Zimbabwe opposition fail in legal bid

HARARE, Zimbabwe (CNN) -- Zimbabwe's High Court ruled Monday that it would not force the troubled African country's electoral commission to release the results of the March 29 presidential vote, two journalists at the court told CNN.

Zimbabwe's opposition party had been hoping that the court would act to end more than two weeks of election deadlock, having accused President Robert Mugabe of holding back the release of the results.

The ruling was a rejection of a petition filed on April 4 by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), which has claimed victory for its candidate Morgan Tsvangirai in lieu of any official results.

The MDC plans to appeal the ruling in the Supreme Court, the party's secretary-general Tendai Biti told CNN.

Sound Off: Have your say on the situation in Zimbabwe

"No one is going to steal this election," Biti said. "Mugabe is exposing himself, the SADC (Southern African Development Community) has exposed his weaknesses, but the people of Zimbabwe have made their voices heard."

Government spokesman Bright Matonga said the ruling was "the right judgment" because it allowed the electoral commission to complete a thorough review of results, The Associated Press reported.

Matonga rejected claims that the court was biased toward the ruling party, arguing that the opposition was willing to apply to the court because it expected an impartial ruling.

Zimbabwe is under international pressure to release the results, amid concerns that Mugabe is stalling the process in order to remain in power. Last month's vote presented the most formidable challenge to his 28 years in power.

Zimbabwe's state-run newspaper, The Herald, has indicated that neither Mugabe nor Tsvangirai received enough votes in the election to avoid a runoff. A candidate must receive 50 percent plus one vote to win without a runoff.

Tsvangirai is now in South Africa following the weekend's summit of the region's leaders in Zambia to discuss the situation, and is trying to seek further support for his cause, AP reported.

The MDC is also petitioning the High Court to block the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission from recounting the votes in all four March 29 elections: presidential, upper and lower houses of parliament and local races.

It is arguing that the recount is being done at the direction of Mugabe's Zanu-PF party, violating the commission's rules that such a request must be filed within 48 hours of the vote, opposition lawyer Selby Hwacha told CNN.

Hwacha called it a "blanket fishing expedition" by Zanu-PF.

But the commission says it is acting on its own, and plans to commence a full recount on Saturday, Hwacha said.

A court hearing is scheduled for Tuesday on the matter, he said.

Official results showed the MDC with more parliamentary seats in the lower house. Zanu-PF has a list of 23 constituencies that they want to recount, Hwacha said.

The MDC has said that any recount -- even before the first count is announced -- would be illegal, and it has called for a general strike to start Tuesday.

The MDC got little help from the southern African leaders, who issued only a weak declaration calling for the quick release of voting results.

Tsvangirai already has declared victory based on vote counts posted at polling stations in Zimbabwe's 210 voting constituencies.

Mugabe, 84, is the only ruler Zimbabwe has had since British rule of the former Rhodesia came to end in 1980. He has been re-elected several times, often either running unopposed or in elections that prompted charges of fraud and state-sponsored terrorism against opponents.

The Sunday summit in Zambia's capital, Lusaka, was seen by many as a test of the Southern African Development Community's willingness, capability and resolve to sort out Zimbabwe's election. Watch a report on the summit »

The 14-member group has failed in the past to condemn Mugabe for alleged electoral fraud and human rights abuses. The summit did not come up with any concrete solution to the impasse on Sunday.

Instead, the group released a two-page report that said the elections were free and that the current government was legitimate because all the results had not yet been counted. It also said the group would send observers if a second round of elections was warranted.

The report did not mention Mugabe by name. It also did not condemn the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission's decision to recount some votes even before it released the results of all the votes cast. E-mail to a friend

CNN's Eunice Mafundikwa and Nkepile Mabuse contributed to this report.

Copyright 2008 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.

All About Zimbabwe • Robert Mugabe • Morgan Tsvangirai