Zim violence could reach 'crisis'

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Harare - Levels of post-election violence in Zimbabwe are escalating in urban and rural areas and could reach crisis proportions, the United Nations' senior representative in the country said on Tuesday.

"These incidents of violence are occurring in communal farming and urban areas and there are indications that the level of violence is escalating in all these areas and could reach crisis levels," Agustino Zacarias, the UN's resident representative in Zimbabwe, told reporters.

Zacarias said most of the violence appeared to have been inflicted by supporters of President Robert Mugabe on suspected followers of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, but the MDC had also carried out attacks.

"There is an emerging pattern of political violence inflicted mainly but not exclusively on rural supporters of the MDC," he said.

"There are reports that MDC supporters are also resorting to violence."

The diplomat said that aid workers, human rights activists and large numbers of civilians had also fallen victim to violence since a March 29 general election, when Mugabe's party lost control of parliament to the MDC.

Battle in a run-off election

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai also beat Mugabe, but fell short of an overall majority and the pair must now do battle in a run-off election, the date of which has still to be announced.

"The UN country team is particularly concerned that this level of violence, reports of threats, intimidation, abuse and violence directed against NGOs, election monitors, human rights defenders and other representatives of civil society," said Zacarias.

"The UN country team is deeply concerned about the number of internally displaced people that have fled their homes for fear of reprisals by party activists without food and other basic social services."

- AFP