The Hindu : Thousands of Zimbabweans disenfranchised

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Mar 09, 2002

International

International

Thousands of Zimbabweans disenfranchised

HARARE MARCH. 8. The final day of campaigning in the most-contested presidential race in Zimbabwe's history ended on Friday ahead of the two-day polling beginning on Saturday. Earlier on Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that tens of thousands of people were not eligible to vote.

The court ruled in favour of a Government appeal that would ban those who hold dual citizenship from voting, disqualifying many whites and tens of thousands of black farm workers from neighbouring countries.

In his last day on the campaign trail, the President, Robert Mugabe (78), toured his ruling party's rural strongholds north of Harare. The increasingly unpopular Mr. Mugabe has resorted to repressive legislation and violent intimidation of the Opposition to stay in office after 22 years in power.

His opponent, Morgan Tsvangirai (49), spent the day visiting industrial districts in Harare, strongholds of his labour-backed Opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change.

In their ruling issued late yesterday, the Supreme Court granted an appeal by the state against an earlier decision by the High Court that permitted residents with a second foreign citizenship to vote. — AP

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