EU deploys long-term observers for Zimbabwe poll

The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Zimbabwe said it will deploy 44 long-term observers on Saturday throughout the country for the July 30 election.

"Observers will be present in the EU EOM mission outfit with the EU EOM logo," the mission said in a statement to Xinhua on Friday.

The observers will be sent off from Harare by deputy chief observer Mark Stevens. The observer group is one of the largest to be deployed so far after Zimbabwe invited Western observers for the first time since 2002.

The deployment will come after the joint International Republican Institute and the National Democratic Institute Zimbabwe election observer mission also deployed 14 long-term observers throughout the country on Friday.

The arrival of the 44 long-term observers follows the mission's 10-member core team that arrived in Zimbabwe early this month.

In total, the EU is planning to deploy about 140 observers for the first post-Mugabe era election, with more than 40 short-term observers expected to be deployed a week before the poll.

Mugabe resigned last November after a military intervention which ended his 37-years stay in power.

He was replaced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, 75, who has promised to deliver a free, fair, transparent and credible election.

Mnangagwa will battle it out with 23 other candidates for the presidency but his main challenger is 40-year old leader of the opposition MDC Alliance Nelson Chamisa who took over from veteran opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai who died of cancer in February this year.

The EU observer mission is expected to release its preliminary report on Zimbabwe's elections two days after the vote, followed by the final report two months later.

--IANS

pgh/