'Tense' Zimbabwe vote continues

'Tense' Zimbabwe vote continues

People wait their turn to vote

A second day of polling is taking place in two key by-elections in Zimbabwe, amid opposition accusations that voters are being intimidated by pro-government militants.

The Movement for Democratic Chance says President Robert Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party is trying to rig the vote in the two constituencies, which were won overwhelmingly by the opposition at the last general election.

But the police said they had received no reports of violence and the election authorities insisted there were no irregularities during voting on Saturday.

Results are expected on Monday.

On Saturday, more than 500 people stood in line at one polling booth in Harare an hour after it opened, complaining that ruling party supporters were jumping the queue.

"Zanu-PF youths are milling around at the gate asking people about their party affiliations and generally being intimidating," said one man.

The MDC alleges that up to 19,000 extra voters have been registered improperly to boost support for Zanu-PF.

The EU accuses Mugabe's government of arresting opponents

An opposition politician, Trudy Stevenson, who tried to visit some polling stations in Kuwadzana constituency, said it was a "very, very tense situation."

"They were obviously stopping anyone they didn't like from coming near," she told the French news agency AFP

But Thomas Bvuma, from the Electoral Supervisory Commission, said the first day of polling had gone well.

"Everything's quiet and peaceful," he said.

Hundreds of Zanu-PF supporters lined the streets to cheer Mr Mugabe as he arrived to vote in his Highfield constituency on Saturday.

Violence

The run-up to the polls had already seen tensions rising following an anti-government strike last week.

Zanu-PF and the MDC exchanged allegations of violence during campaigning which human rights groups say left hundreds of people injured.

On Friday, the European Union condemned "unprecedented government-sponsored violence" against the opposition in Zimbabwe.

It accused President Mugabe's government of arbitrarily detaining and torturing hundreds of opponents.

It also said the Zimbabwean people had a constitutional right to protest peacefully and called on the government to respect that right.

One of the parliamentary seats at stake in the by-elections came vacant when the sitting MP died in police custody.

A leader of the pro-government militants who have been occupying farms is one of the candidates for his seat.