"Canada has been concerned for a long time about actions taken by the Zimbabwean government. We have worked from the beginning to encourage improvements. Our concerns only increased in the lead up to the election that took place March 9-11.

In discussions with African and other Commonwealth Leaders, we agreed that the electoral process would offer Zimbabweans the opportunity to express their views on the government they want. The Commonwealth agreed to send election observers to ensure the best election possible under the circumstances. The Commonwealth Observers Group, led by Nigeria's Abubakar, had 42 experienced observers drawn from African and other nations, including Canada.

Today, a preliminary report from the Commonwealth Observer Group confirms two important facts. One, that there has not been free expression of will and that the election was held in a climate of fear. Secondly, the Zimbabwean people have distinguished themselves by a display of courage and determination, exercising their democratic rights under difficult circumstances.

We will be speaking with other Commonwealth Leaders and other key allies in the days ahead to explore building the broadest consensus for the most thorough action possible to ensure that the weight of displeasure by the international community is made known to the Zimbabwean government. We have withdrawn all funding to the Zimbabwean government. Members of the present government will not be welcome in Canada.

We hope that the final report of the Commonwealth Observer Group will help guide the Commonwealth troika in its decision making.

We implore the Zimbabwean government to provide transparent legal recourse to those arrested or detained in recent days and we urge all Zimbabweans to avoid any provocative actions that could lead to further violence."