Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai called Wednesday for "armed peacekeepers" to be sent to his country amid mounting international condemnation of President Robert Mugabe over the crisis.
Tsvangirai emerged from the Dutch embassy, where he was holed up for three days after withdrawing from Friday's presidential run-off, and appealed for renewed efforts by regional leaders meeting on the Zimbabwe unrest.
"I didn't ask for any military intervention, but for armed peacekeepers," he told reporters, referring to comments in Britain's Guardian newspaper that the United Nations had to go further than verbal condemnation of Mugabe and move to "active isolation" which required "a force to protect the people."
"This cannot be a part-time mediation effort," Tsvangirai added in comments to reporters at his house. "The time for action is now. The people in the country can wait no longer."
He called on the African Union and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) "to lead... to start what I would call a transitional setup" that "would allow the country to heal."
President Bush called the presidential runoff election in Zimbabwe a sham. Bush said that the people of Zimbabwe deserve better and just want to express themselves at the ballot box.
"Friday's elections appear to be a sham," Bush said. "You can't have free elections when a candidate is not allowed to campaign without fear of intimidation."
As Tsvangirai left the embassy Tuesday, police raided a headquarters of his Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) in the eastern city of Mutare where 200 people displaced by political violence had taken refuge, according to an MDC spokesman.
The MDC claims scores of its supporters have been killed in political violence since Tsvangirai beat Mugabe in the first round of the presidential vote but did not get the majority needed to become president.
Tsvangirai quit the presidential race on Sunday saying it was too risky for his followers to stay in the election battle with Mugabe.
Tsvangirai said "no discussion" was possible with the government until his party number two and 2,000 "political prisoners" were freed.
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