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http://abc.net.au/news/newsitems/s503893.htm Australian Broadcasting Company March 14, 2002 US and Britain consider Zimbabwe sanctions United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan is appealing for calm in Zimbabwe after the controversial presidential election, but says he does not think the United Nations plans any punitive measures. But both the United States and Britain have warned stronger sanctions are under consideration after the Zimbabwean authorities declared President Robert Mugabe the winner with 56.2 per cent of the vote. The Opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) won 41.9 per cent of the vote but its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, rejected the results, claiming the election had been "massively rigged" amid widespread reports of violence, intimidation, harassment, ballot fiddling and outright cheating. Mr Tsvangirai has made the comments at a media briefing attended by hundreds of journalists, diplomats and observers in Harare. Mr Tsvangirai described the poll as the biggest election fraud he has ever witnessed. Sanctions US Secretary of State Colin Powell said, in a statement read by department spokesman Richard Boucher: "Mr Mugabe can claim victory but not democratic legitimacy." Britain's Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, warned President Mugabe that if it is confirmed he stole the election, it will have enormous implications for the nature of Britain's relationship with Zimbabwe. He says Britain will now consult with its European Union partners, the United States, and the Commonwealth. Mr Boucher also says the United States will "consult closely with other governments to develop appropriate responses to this major setback to democracy in Zimbabwe". He added: "Among the responses that we are considering, there is a possible broadening of sanctions against those responsible for undermining democracy in Zimbabwe." Western countries and independent observers have condemned the election, saying tens of thousands of people in the opposition stronghold of Harare were unable to vote. Conflicting reports Mr Annan told a news conference that he was receiving "conflicting reports" from observers about the fairness of the three-day poll, which ended Monday. "Some observers have said it was not free and fair, others have indicated that it was free and fair; I need to get a much more definitive assessment," he said. "President Mugabe has been declared the winner. I'm not sure that the Security Council or the UN is going to take any punitive action at this stage but I'll leave the member states to decide what they want to do," he added. There are no United Nations sanctions in place against Zimbabwe. Mr Annan says he is "anxious about the situation" in Zimbabwe and noted that "the people showed amazing commitment and patience in the way they turned out and tried to vote". He appealed to all Zimbabweans "to remain calm and show respect for each other's rights and the democratic procees and disavow all acts of violence and retribution". EU The head of the European Union's observer mission who was expelled from Zimbabwe, Pierre Schori of Sweden, says he does not consider the election free and fair and described it as a "violation" of Zimbabweans' rights. "If we had remained in the country with our observers we would have come to the same conclusion as the Norwegian group (of observers)," he said. "I have read their report and I must say this election cannot be considered free and fair," Mr Schori told Swedish news agency TT. "Rather, it is a violation of the people of Zimbabwe," he said. Mugabe in February banned six EU countries from witnessing the polls - Sweden, Britain, Denmark, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands - accusing them of sponsoring Mr Tsvangirai's MDC. Mr Schori, who headed the EU observer mission but was expelled on grounds that he was violating a tourist visa, said the consequences of the election would depend largely on the reactions of neighbouring countries. "They naturally have both the biggest responsibility and the biggest cause for concern that a chaotic situation may arise, both regarding refugee flows and the effects on their currencies as well as the world's view of Africa," he said. Neighboubrs Compared to the remainder of international reaction, Zimbabwe's neighbours were markedly more upbeat. An observer team from the Organization of African Unity (OAU) has described the ballot as "transparent, credible, free and fair" in general. Its head, Gertrude Mongella, says the assessment was made "on the basis of observations made during the voting, verification and counting process on the ground, and objective realities". The South African Government's observer mission says the result "should be considered legitimate", while stopping short of calling it free and fair. Within the 14-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC), a team from its independent Parliamentary Forum says the ballot "did not conform with (its) norms and standard". However, a team from the SADC's Council of Ministers considered it a "true reflection" of the people's will. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! 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