Zimbabwe

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has filed an urgent application with the country's top court to push back crucial elections by two weeks, his justice minister said Wednesday.Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa told AFP he had filed papers on Tuesday that sought "a postponement of the date for the harmonised elections from July 31, 2013 to August 14, 2013."The announcement comes just days after Southern African leaders pressed Mugabe to delay the polls to allow more time for democratic reforms.In setting the original election date, Mugabe had said he was complying with the constitutional court's ruling to hold elections by July 31.The elections will choose a successor to Zimbabwe's uncomfortable power-sharing government, which was forged four years ago as a path away from a decade of political violence.Prime Minister Morgan Tsvanigirai, a long-time Mugabe rival, has called for reforms -- to free the media, depoliticise the security services and make sure the electoral roll is accurate...

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