World News Story

08 January 2009 23:57 BST

Mugabe ignores criticism, insists poll will go ahead

Robert Mugabe has defied international condemnation to insist this Friday's presidential runoff vote will take place.

Mr Mugabe has vowed to press on with Friday's election, despite being the sole candidate and the US joining a growing number of nations claiming they will not recognise its outcome.

The 84-year-old told state media that he was open to negotiations with Mr Tsvangirai but only after the election had reaffirmed his position as president.

Earlier Morgan Tsvangirai appealed to the United Nations to deploy peacekeepers to Zimbabwe as consternation over Mr Mugabe's regime grows.

Opposition leader Mr Tsvangirai, who has withdrawn from Friday's presidential runoff vote with Mr Mugabe amid escalating politically-motivated violence, has now left Harare's Dutch embassy after being granted refuge.

Following the UN security council's unanimous condemnation of the government's violent campaign of voter intimidation, Mr Tsvangirai urged on Wednesday for world leaders to assemble a Zimbabwean peacekeeping force.

"We ask for the UN to go further than its recent resolution, condemning the violence in Zimbabwe, to encompass an active isolation of the dictator Mugabe," he wrote in the Guardian.

Mr Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), says up to 80 of his supporters have been killed by pro-government militias since the inconclusive presidential vote of March 29th.

"For this we need a force to protect the people. We do not want armed conflict, but the people of Zimbabwe need the words of indignation from global leaders to be backed by the moral rectitude of military force," he continued.

"Such a force would be in the role of peacekeepers, not trouble-makers. They would separate the people from their oppressors and cast the protective shield around the democratic process for which Zimbabwe yearns."

Mr Mugabe earlier taunted Mr Tsvangirai for seeking refuge in the Dutch embassy.

The Herald quoted Mr Mugabe as saying: "Why seek refuge? What for? Why are you afraid of the vote now?"

On the international condemnation of his regime and insistence he will not postpone the vote he added: "They can shout as loud as they want from Washington and London but our people will deliver the final verdict."

Also on Wednesday it emerged South African president Thabo Mbeki is not expected to attend an emergency meeting in Swaziland on Zimbabwe.

The Southern African Development Community (SADC), which called the meeting, said Mr Mbeki had been asked to attend but a spokesman for the president said his office had not receive an invitation.