BuaNews (Tshwane)
8 June 2008
Pretoria — The South African government has called on all parties involved to discontinue any action that may serve to detract from the objective of having free and fair Presidential run-off elections in Zimbabwe.
In a statement issued by the Presidency on Friday, government expressed its hope that the matter raised by United States of America Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, bilaterally with the Zimbabwean authorities regarding the plight of USA diplomats in the country, will be resolved as speedily as possible at a bilateral level.
"The South African government is currently seized with the matter of the facilitation between the relevant parties in Zimbabwe to ensure that the Presidential run-off election takes place under optimal conditions that will enable the will of the Zimbabwean people to be expressed," the statement said.
The election run-off date is set for 27 June following the initial presidential balloting being inconclusive and marred by allegations of fraud and vote rigging.
Both current President Robert Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai fell short of gaining a straight majority.
Early last week, President Thabo Mbeki urged the government and the people of Zimbabwe to activate joint monitoring mechanisms as part of creating an environment conducive to holding free and fair elections.
"President Mbeki appeals for calmness and proportionate use of language, the better to manage tensions which are generally associated with election campaigns in many parts of the world," the Presidency said.
The statement followed the detention of Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai who was later released without being charged.
Mr Tsvangirai was detained so that his vehicle particulars could be probed.
Upon being informed by the MDC of the arrest of its leader, President Mbeki in his capacity as the Southern African Development Community (SADC) facilitator immediately contacted the government of Zimbabwe to ascertain the circumstances of the arrest.
A preliminary group of South African observers have been deployed in Zimbabwe ahead of the run-off elections.
The numbers of observers to Zimbabwe have increased substantially and South African Development Community (SADC) observers would also be in place by the time the elections are held.
SADC observers will not only be observing the voting but intervening where there are acts of violence in an attempt to disrupt a free and fair election process.
Following allegations of violence in Zimbabwe in the run up to the elections, President Thabo Mbeki had dispatched senior South African retired generals to assess the situation in the country and to report back to him.
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