Zimbabwe's High Court on Monday rejected an opposition bid to force authorities to release the result of the country's presidential election after a two-week delay that has stoked fears of violence.

As the court dealt a major blow to its efforts to reveal who won the March 29 vote, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said one of its supporters had been stabbed to death by members of President Robert Mugabe's ZANU-PF party. Police said the killing, by three people, did not appear to be political.

High Court Judge Tendai Uchena ruled in favour of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC), saying it had shown the reason for the results delay was legally valid: "It can therefore justify the delay..I dismiss the case with costs." The MDC says Mugabe's 28-year rule is over after its leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, defeated Mugabe in the vote. It took the ZEC to court to try to force it to announce the result. The commission says it is still counting and verifying votes.

The opposition says the veteran leader is holding back the announcement to give him time to organise a violent response to his biggest electoral setback, when ZANU-PF lost control of parliament in a second vote on March 29.

MDC Vice President Thokozani Khupe said the dead supporter had been stabbed by ZANU-PF supporters at his homestead and had died on Saturday. The attack occurred in a northwestern rural area. At least 20 other MDC supporters had been admitted to hospital in Harare after ZANU-PF attacks, Khupe added.

Zimbabwe's economy is in ruins, with the world's worst rate of inflation of more than 100,000 percent. Critics blame Mugabe for the economic crisis and say the country's misery will only end when he is replaced.

The High Court judgment appears to delay the poll result.

MDC spokesman Nelson Chamisa told Reuters: "Naturally we are very disappointed because I think we have a very strong case. We are going to decide the way forward after meeting our lawyers, but in our view the release of those results is very, very urgent."MDC lawyers said they would decide whether to appeal after studying the judgement.


GENERAL STRIKE

The opposition has called an indefinite general strike for Tuesday to protest against the delay, prompting the police to say in a statement the MDC was "agitating for violence".

Southern African leaders said after a summit in Lusaka at the weekend the election result should be released "expeditiously".

Further delays are expected because of legal manoeuvres and a recount of 23 constituencies ordered by the ZEC for next Saturday. The MDC is challenging that decision in court.

The MDC also filed on Monday an application asking the electoral court to set aside the results in about 60 parliamentary seats won by Mugabe's ZANU-PF.

"All in all we have filed about 60 applications to the Electoral Court in respect of the house of assembly seats. The applications are to ensure that the declarations of the results be set aside," MDC lawyer Charles Kwaramba told Reuters.

In its court challenge the MDC accuses ZANU-PF of vote-buying, intimidating and interfering with presiding election officers and other malpractices, Kwaramba said.

ZANU-PF says neither Tsvangirai nor Mugabe won an absolute majority in the presidential vote, making a run-off necessary.

The delays have stoked tension and brought a chorus of Western condemnation.

Both MDC and international human rights organisations say Mugabe has unleashed militias in a campaign of violence to intimidate opposition supporters ahead of a runoff.

The MDC says hundreds of villagers have been forced out of their homes by militia attacks. A quarter of Zimbabwe's population has fled to escape chronic shortages of food and fuel and 80 percent unemployment.

The ZEC's recounts could overturn the MDC's victory in the parliamentary vote, Mugabe's first defeat since taking power after independence from Britain in 1980.

MDC lawyer Selby Hwacha accused the ZEC of calling the recount to help ZANU-PF rig the poll.

The summit of SADC (Southern African Development Community) in Lusaka at the weekend urged Mugabe to ensure any run-off would be held "in a secure environment".

The former guerrilla commander did not attend.