Observer Mission Statements
"It is the view of the mission that the 2005 parliamentary elections in Zimbabwe reflect the free will of the people of Zimbabwe" said South African Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana, who led the South African government observer mission for the elections.
Mdladlana said the elections on Thursday "by and large" conformed to election guidelines adopted by southern African leaders last year for holding a democratic vote.
"Let me congratulate the people of Zimbabwe for holding a peaceful, credible and well-organised election which we feel reflects the will of the people" said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, the South African cabinet minister that led the 55-member, 11-country observer mission from the Southern African Development Community.
Mlambo Ngcuka said the observer mission had asked the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) to provide evidence to support their claims of discrepancies in 32 of the 120 constituencies.
"We have received complaints and asked for information. We still don't have it. There is not much more we can do." she said.
Read more about this topic: Zimbabwean Parliamentary Election, 2005
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