Violence in Zimbabwe sparks concern by rights groups

By ANGUS SHAW Associated Press Writer

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) - International rights and aid groups expressed alarm over the potential for political violence in Zimbabwe as the government and ruling party - if not the opposition - prepared for a presidential runoff.

Human Rights Watch said in a statement late Friday that attacks on the opposition by the ruling party, its allied militant groups and the army since the first round of presidential voting March 29 made a free and fair runoff "a tragic joke."

The U.N. children's agency said the violence was hurting the most vulnerable Zimbabweans.

Earlier on Friday, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission released results from the March 29 presidential election that showed opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai winning the most votes, but not the simple majority needed to avoid a runoff with President Robert Mugabe, the second-place finisher. The opposition rejected the results as fraudulent.

Tsvangirai's deputy in the Movement for Democratic Change, Tendai Biti, told reporters in Johannesburg in neighboring South Africa that the only way out of the impasse was a power-sharing government led by Tsvangirai, but with no role for Mugabe.

Biti acknowledged that skipping a second round could result in another term for Mugabe, but he would not categorically rule out participating in a runoff. However, he said there could not be one "for the simple and good reasons that that country is burning" amid violence and an economic collapse from rampant inflation.

Mugabe's party said he would run in a second round, for which no date has been set. Deputy Information Minister Bright Matonga said the constitution requires a second round no sooner than 21 days from the announcement of the results, and no later than a year.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said: "The ruling ZANU-PF party, the army and so-called war veterans have conducted a brutal state-sponsored campaign of violence, torture and intimidation against (opposition) activists and supporters."

The group said limits on the opposition's access to the media and questions about the impartiality of electoral officials have also not been addressed.

"The ruling party's bloody crackdown on the opposition makes a free and fair runoff vote a tragic joke," Georgette Gagnon, Human Rights Watch's Africa director, said in the statement.

In its own statement Friday, UNICEF said there were growing reports of children fleeing their homes with their families as a result of political violence and that aid groups were finding it increasingly difficult to operate.

Mugabe's officials have denied fomenting political violence, instead accusing the opposition of being behind the unrest.

Mugabe, 84, was hailed at independence in 1980 for promoting racial reconciliation and bringing education and health care to the black majority. But in recent years he has been accused of holding onto power through elections that independent observers say were marred by fraud, intimidation and rigging.