Mugabe a beaten man, says presidential rival Tsvangirai

Zimbabwe’s main opposition leader is insisting that he has won presidential elections outright and is not negotiating to ease out Robert Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe from liberation to ruin.

At his first press conference since Saturday’s elections, Morgan Tsvangirai said he was waiting on an official announcement of election results before he would enter any discussions with Mugabe.

Mr Tsvangirai claimed to have won more than the 50% plus one vote needed for victory.

The businessman said Mugabe, 84, had been told he was far behind Mr Tsvangirai in preliminary results and that he might have to face a run-off. He said the prospect was too humiliating for Mugabe, and that was why the president was considering ceding power.

A businessman close to the state electoral commission and a lawyer close to the opposition said earlier that the two men’s aides were negotiating a graceful exit for the country’s leader of 28 years. Both sources spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Several diplomats said they had heard similar reports of secret negotiations but could not confirm talks were under way.

“There are no discussions,” Mr Tsvangirai said. “Let’s wait for ZEC (Zimbabwe Electoral Commission) to complete its work, then we can discuss the circumstances that will affect the people.”

Deputy information minister Bright Matonga also denied any talks, telling the BBC: “There are no negotiations whatsoever, because we are waiting for the presidential results, so why do we need to hold any secret talks?”

Tensions rose as people stayed away from work to await results. A senior police officer, Wayne Bvudzijena, went on state radio to say: “Our forces are more than ready to deal with perpetrators of violence.”

Paramilitary police have stepped up patrols in Harare and Bulawayo, the second city, and several roadblocks have been set up at strategic entries to the capital. The opposition has most of its support in urban centres.

The Zimbabwe Election Support Network, a coalition of 38 Zimbabwe civil society organisations, said its random representative sample of polling stations showed Mr Tsvangirai won just over 49% of the vote and Mugabe 42%. Simba Makoni, a former Mugabe loyalist, trailed at about 8%.

For the first time in this election, results were posted on the doors of the 9,000 polling stations in the country. This initiative, part of an agreement between the parties negotiated by South African president Thabo Mbeki, could make it more difficult to cheat, and allowed independent groups to compile their own tallies.

At the news conference, Mr Tsvangirai spoke as if he already had been declared president:

“For years we have trod a journey of hunger, pain, torture and brutality,” he said. “Today we face a new challenge of governing and rehabilitating our beloved country, the challenge of giving birth to a new Zimbabwe founded on restoration, not retribution, on love not war.”

Political analyst John Makumbe said he had learned from military sources that they would respect the results of the elections. The day before the elections, security chiefs had said they would not serve anybody but Mugabe and would not tolerate an opposition victory.

In Washington, the White House indicated it believed the opposition had won.

“It’s clear the people of Zimbabwe have voted for change,” said Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the National Security Council. “It’s time for the Zimbabwean Electoral Commission to confirm the results we have all seen from the local polling stations and respected NGOs.”

The European Union said it wants Mugabe to step down to spare his nation political turmoil.

“If Mr Mugabe continues, there will be a coup d’etat,” said Slovenian foreign minister Dimitri Rupel, whose country holds the EU presidency. He said he hoped Mugabe “is on his way out.”

The Electoral Commission has released results for 182 of the 210 parliamentary seats – giving Mr Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change 92 seats, including five for a breakaway faction, to 90 for Mugabe’s ruling party. At least six Cabinet ministers have lost their seats, according to the official results.

The commission has offered no results in the presidential race.