London
19 June 2008
A British government minister says if the upcoming election in Zimbabwewere free and fair, the opposition would win. Mark Malloch Brown addedthat the world would not allow President Mugabe to get away withstealing the election. Tendai Maphosa has more in this report for VOAfrom London.
Foreign Office Minister Mark Malloch Brown is thelatest to add his voice to the growing disapproval of President RobertMugabe's campaign for the presidential election set for June 27. Hespoke on local radio.
The MDC says more than 60 of its supportersand activists have been murdered by supporters of Mr. Mugabe's ZANU-PFparty, so-called war veterans of Zimbabwe's war of independence and thesecurity forces. A further 2,000, the opposition says, havereceived varying degrees of injuries, while 30,000 have beendisplaced.
Mr. Mugabe blames the opposition for the violence,but reports by various human rights groups all say the president isusing violence to intimidate voters into backing him on June 27.