Zimbabwe election pressure mounts

Four days after elections in Zimbabwe, pressure is growing on the country's electoral commission to issue results.

Amid intensifying global scrutiny, Morgan Tsvangirai said his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) would issue its own results if the commission did not.

State newspaper The Herald is reporting a run-off is likely for president, with no-one expected to gain more than 50%.

Mr Tsvangirai has said he is sure he defeated President Robert Mugabe, but denied discussing a deal to let him go.

He would not claim victory until the official count was known, said Mr Tsvangirai, adding that no negotiations would take place until such time.

'No deal'

Bright Matonga, Zanu-PF's Deputy Information Minister, also rejected reports of a deal.

MDC sources had earlier told the BBC the outline of an agreement had nearly been reached for Mr Mugabe to step down.

Parliamentary results released so far show that the MDC has 90 seats, including five for a breakaway faction of the party, against 85 for Zanu-PF, with 35 still to come.

In his first public appearance since the election, Mr Tsvangirai told a news conference on Tuesday evening there was "no way the MDC will enter in any deal before ZEC [Zimbabwe Electoral Commission] has actually announced the result".

But he said the MDC would issue its own tally of results if ZEC continues to withhold the official figures.

They would be based on the figures which had to be posted by law outside each polling station after counting was completed.

Quoting analysts, The Herald newspaper said on Wednesday that the "pattern of results" showed a re-run would be necessary.

Independent observers had previously said Mr Tsvangirai seemed to have taken the most votes in the presidential race.

More than 50% of the vote is needed to avoid a second run-off vote, which would have to be held three weeks after the 29 March election.

While the atmosphere on Zimbabwe's streets remains peaceful, if tense, there are fears that prolonging the declaration of results could foment similar violent clashes to those which followed Kenya's contested elections in January.

Roadblocks have been set up around the capital, Harare, and there has been a marked increase in the presence of paramilitary police on the streets of major cities.

As pressure grew around the world for final results to be declared, United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for calm.

He urged the "utmost transparency be exercised so that the people of Zimbabwe can have full confidence in the process".

The White House said it was clear the people of Zimbabwe had "voted for change".

The European Union called on the Zimbabwean president to resign, with its president warning there would be a "coup d'etat" if Mr Mugabe did not step down.

"We don't want the situation to develop like in Kenya," said Slovenian Foreign Minister Dimitri Rupel, whose country holds the EU presidency.

South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu told the BBC the fact that results had not been announced was very significant.

"Even the dumbest of us would say that results would not have been held back... had it not been the fact that Mr Mugabe has not won," said the Nobel Peace Prize winner.

"Had the Zanu PF won these elections we would have heard them crowing a long time ago."

Earlier the Zimbabwe Election Support Network, a coalition of civil society organisations, said its random sample of poll stations indicated Mr Tsvangirai had won just over 49% of the vote and Mr Mugabe 42%.

Simba Makoni, a former Mugabe loyalist, trailed at about 8%.

Mr Mugabe, 84, has not been seen in public since the election.