CANBERRA—Australia is increasingly concerned by threats of violence from Robert Mugabe and wants African nations to prevent the Zimbabwean leader hijacking a forthcoming presidential ballot.
Both Labor and the opposition are pushing African leaders to pressure Mr Mugabe to allow a free and fair run-off poll, scheduled for June 27.
Mr Mugabe has alarmed the international community with his vow to fight to keep his rival, Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai, from taking power if he wins.
The elderly Marxist President suggested he would never let the country be taken by "traitors" and raised the spectre of civil war if the opposition party won the poll.
The opposition has warned of a campaign of intimidation ahead of the election and claims more than 60 of its supporters have been killed since the original March vote.
Yesterday Mr Tsvangirai and 11 MDC campaign colleagues were held by police for three hours after being taken into custody at a roadblock.
The MDC leader has been detained several times this month.
The Rudd Government repeated its plea for the African Union and the South African Development Council to use its influence on the Mugabe regime.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd fears Mr Mugabe will try to steal the election.
"Therefore, it is important for the international community of nations, including the African Union and the South African Development Council to speak with one voice about the importance of democracy and the will of the people prevailing in Zimbabwe," he told reporters.
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told ABC TV the Zimbabwean leader's latest comments only compounded his concerns about the legitimacy of the poll.
"We've seen since the first round run-off a climate of intimidation, oppression, the arrest for the fifth time of Mr Tsvangirai ... this is just Mugabe making it clear he won't accept the will of the people," he said.
Mr Smith said pressure from countries like Australia and Britain was undermined without a commensurate response from African nations.
"If Mugabe continues along these lines I'm quite happy for Australia to be looking at what further measures we can take," he said.
"But the problem ... is this, whenever the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia act and we act in advance of or separately from the African union states, Mugabe seeks to use that in a domestic political way to get an advantage.
"So, the primary responsibility in our view has to start with the South African development community and the African union states and we urge them ... to start placing more pressure on the brutal Mugabe regime."
The coalition agrees with the need for action from African neighbours, and is suggesting an urgent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to discuss the issue.
Opposition Foreign Affairs spokesman Andrew Robb told AAP that with around one-third of CHOGM made up of African nations, it still had the potential to influence the situation in Zimbabwe.
"But there's not a lot of time left," he said.
Mr Robb also wants African leaders, including South African President Thabo Mbeki and his predecessor Nelson Mandela, to urge Mr Mugabe to step aside, or, failing that, to allow the election to go ahead unimpeded.
"Other African leaders need to follow the lead of Desmond Tutu and call for him to resign," he said.
"(This) will only happen with real action from African leaders."
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