Zimbabweans go to the polls

The people of Zimbabwe are going to the polls in the second round of a presidential election in which Robert Mugabe is the only candidate.



The opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, withdrew from the contest because of violence and intimidation against his supporters.



He urged them to vote to protect themselves from further attacks.



President Mugabe has ignored several calls from other African leaders to postpone the poll.



The latest was from the government of Nigeria, which said it was doubtful that a credible election could be held in the present circumstances.



Earlier, Mr. Mugabe brushed aside calls for the election to be postponed or called off.



He said his party Zanu-PF would continue to rule the country, as they believed it should be ruled.



Mr. Mugabe came second to Mr. Tsvangirai in the first round of the presidential vote in March.



Since then, the MDC said about 86 of its supporters have been killed and 200,000 forced from their homes by militias loyal to Zanu-PF.



The government blames the MDC for the violence, and yesterday the police accused Britain and the US of backing MDC plans to disrupt today\'s voting.