An experienced southern African election monitoring group has judged Zimbabwe's electoral process "severely wanting in respect of fairness."

The Electoral Institute of Southern Africa, which has monitored elections in most southern African countries over the last five years, issued a seven-page report which said that compared to previous elections in Zimbabwe, last Saturday's polls were "partly free in that there existed a more peaceful environment allowing for freedom of association, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech."

However, EISA said, "most critical aspects of the process lacked transparency."

It said stakeholders in the election lacked confidence in the integrity of the voters' roll, did not agree on the date of the election and complained that the delimitation of constituencies was subject to "gerrymandering."

Public media favoured the ruling party. Neither the government nor the official electoral commission repudiated statements by security chiefs that they would not recognise an opposition victory. And state resources had been deployed  to one party's benefit in electioneering: President Robert Mugabe had given away buses, television sets, food aid and agricultural equipment at the height of the campaign.

Noting that nine million ballot papers were printed for six million voters, EISA said that best election practice allowed for a planned surplus of 10 percent (or 600,000) extra papers.