Mugabe supporters raid more white-owned farms

Militant supporters of Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe have invaded more white-owned farms today.

Trevor Gifford, president of the Commercial Farmers Union, says at least 27 farms have suffered incursions in southern Masvingo province and northern Centenary.

Mr Gifford said: "In Masvingo, where the police have been very co-operative, every time they remove invaders, within five, six hours they're re-invading. It's very apparent that this is being co-ordinated from higher up the chain of command."

The state-controlled newspaper The Herald reported today that Mugabe has urged Zimbabweans to defend land seized from white farmers under "reforms" he introduced.

"This our soil and the soil must never go back to the whites," Mugabe said.

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, who claims to have won last month's presidential election, was in South Africa holding meetings today and issued a call for international pressure to persuade Mugabe to step down.

Mr Tsvangirai flew out of Zimbabwe yesterday and was meeting with "important people in South Africa," Tendai Biti, secretary-general of the Movement for Democratic Change party said.

Zimbabwean electoral officials have yet to say whether Mr Tsvangirai or Mugabe won the presidential election, and the two rivals have adopted sharply contrasting strategies in response.

Mugabe has virtually conceded he did not win, and is already campaigning for an expected run-off on a platform of intimidation and exploiting racial tension.

Mr Tsvangirai says he won, and has demanded Zimbabwean courts and the international community support him.

A Zimbabwe court postponed until tomorrow a ruling on an opposition petition to force the release of the presidential election results. Mugabe's ruling party has demanded a recount, and a further delay in the release of results.

The court did decide that it had the jurisdiction to hear the case, an aspect that had been in dispute, lawyer Alec Muchadehama said.

Mr Biti said Mugabe's party was trying further stall the process. Zimbabwe's courts are stacked with judges loyal to Mugabe.

Mr Tsvangirai has expressed concerns the state would mobilise the armed forces, youth brigades and war veterans to terrorise voters into supporting Mugabe in any runoff.

Mugabe has been accused of winning previous elections through violence and intimidation. Scores of opponents were killed during the 2002 and 2005 campaigns.

Government officials have dismissed fears of violence.

Mugabe, 84, started the often-violent seizure of white-owned farms in 2000, after he suffered his first defeat at the polls over a referendum to entrench his presidential powers. He said the farms would go to poor blacks.

Many of the 5,000 seized farms went to a his friends and cronies, however.

The seizures touched off an economic collapse in the country that used to thrive on exports of food, minerals and tobacco.

Mugabe, who has ruled since his guerrilla army helped overthrow white minority rule in 1980, has seen his popularity battered by the economic crisis.

A leader of independence war fighters in Masvingo, Isiah Muzenda, said veterans and "patriotic Zimbabweans" will take "strong action against unrepentant white farmers" allegedly preparing the repossess their farms.

The state-controlled Herald newspaper also claimed the opposition planned to hire German bankers to run the state central bank, whose hurried printing of money, including a new 50 million Zimbabwe dollar note, has further heated inflation raging beyond 100,000%.

Unofficial tallies by independent monitors show Tsvangirai won more votes than Mugabe - but fewer than the 50% plus one vote required to avoid a runoff.

The law requires a runoff within 21 days of the initial election, but diplomats in Harare and at the United Nations say Mugabe may order a 90-day delay to give security forces time to clamp down.

Official results for parliamentary elections held alongside the presidential race showed Mugabe's ZANU-PF losing its majority in the 210-seat parliament for the first time in the country's history.

Final results for the 60 elected seats in the senate gave the ruling party and the opposition 30 seats each.