HARARE—Zambia on Wednesday called an emergency meeting of southern African leaders to discuss Zimbabwe, as fears grew in the region that an election deadlock would provoke bloodshed.
No results have emerged of the presidential election 11 days after the vote and the opposition says President Robert Mugabe is planning a violent response to his biggest defeat since taking power in 1980.
The opposition Movement for Democratic Change says its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, won and should be declared president, ending Mugabe's unbroken power since independence from Britain.
The MDC charges Mugabe is trying to prolong the delay to regroup. Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa told reporters on Wednesday Mugabe's ZANU-PF was gearing up for a runoff vote.
In the first direct intervention by Zimbabwe's neighbours, Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa called a meeting of Southern African Development Community (SADC) leaders for Saturday to formulate a concerted response. Mwanawasa is current chairman of the body.
Mwanawasa's call came after Jacob Zuma, leader of South Africa's ruling African National Congress, said the results must be released, signalling a new, more robust reaction to the crisis than President Thabo Mbeki who favours "quiet diplomacy".
HARARE—Zimbabwe's High Court will rule next Monday on an opposition application to force out the result of the country's presidential election, the judge said on Wednesday.
"Conscious of the urgency of the matter, I am of the view that if I exert myself to study the submissions, I should be ready with a judgement on Monday," judge Tendai Uchena said.
Mwanawasa told journalists in Lusaka: "Because of the deepening problems in the country, I felt that this matter should be dealt with at presidential level".
SADC has been criticised in the past for failing to pressure Mugabe despite the collapse of his country's once prosperous economy, which has sent millions of refugees fleeing into South Africa and other neighbours.
Mwanawasa briefly broke ranks with other leaders last year when he called Zimbabwe a "sinking Titanic" before getting back in line under pressure from other SADC leaders.
The MDC accuses Mugabe of planning to use rigging and violence to steal the election. It has called on African states to prevent a slide into bloodshed.
HARARE—Zimbabwe's ruling ZANU-PF party is as anxious as anybody to know the result of the country's presidential election and is preparing for a runoff, Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa said on Wednesday.
Chinamasa told a a news conference there could be no result until the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) had counted and verified the figures.
"Until ZEC is ready they will have nothing to announce. We are also anxious for the process to end. But we are not just waiting for results, we are gearing up for a runoff," Chinamasa said.
Chinamasa told reporters on Wednesday that ZANU-PF was also anxious for the result but in the meantime was preparing for a Mugabe-Tsvangirai runoff.
"Until ZEC (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is ready they will have nothing to announce. We are also anxious for the process to end. But we are not just waiting for results, we are gearing up for a runoff," he said. Chinamasa said the electoral commission had accepted a ZANU-PF request for a recount in five constituencies in a parallel parliamentary election which the party lost for the first time.
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