Zimbabwe elections put back

The squatters have the backing of the president

One-third of voters have moved since the electoral lists were compiled

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has postponed this year's parliamentary elections until May, citing delays in updating voter registers.

"When all is set elections could be held early in May or mid-May," President Mugabe said, adding that a specific poll date would be determined by how quickly voter registers could be updated.

Elections had been scheduled for April.

Last year President Mugabe contradicted his Legal Affairs Minister Emmerson Mnangagwa who had said it was not possible to organise elections in April.

Out of date lists

The United Nations last year said that a quarter of those listed on the voter registers had died, and another third of the 5.8 million registered voters had moved constituencies since the last polls in 1995.

The need to adjust constituencies to take account of new population figures will also affect the date of the elections.

The ruling Zanu-PF party is under serious pressure from the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), and the opposition are in confident mood after defeating proposals to change the constitution in a February referendum.

This would allowed the seizure of white-owned farms for land reform.

'Chaos'

Since that time, several hundred of the farms have been invaded by government supporters - correspondents say President Mugabe has been exploiting the issue for electoral benefit.

He said on Saturday he will do nothing to evict war veterans who have occupied the farms, as long as their actions remain peaceful.

He said attempting to enforce a court ruling ordering the squatters out without the help of the government would cause chaos.