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Mugabe attacks opposition and UK
Added: 04/18/2008,
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"Down with the British. Down with thieves who want to steal our country," he told 15,000 people at celebrations marking 28 years of independence.
He has made few public comments since the presidential poll on 29 March.
Meanwhile, South African dock workers are refusing to unload a shipment of arms from China destined for Zimbabwe.
The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) said it did "not agree with the position of the government not to intervene with this shipment".
"Our members employed at Durban container terminal will not unload this cargo, neither will any of our members in the truck-driving sector move this cargo by road," Satawu's general secretary, Randall Howard, told local media.
This is the saddest independence day since our liberation from colonial rule
Reports say the Chinese cargo ship An Yue Jiang, anchored off Durban, is carrying 3.5m rounds of ammunition, 1,500 40mm rockets, 2,500 mortar shells and 93 cases of mortar tubes.
On Thursday, Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, said South African President Thabo Mbeki needed to be "relieved of his duties" as a mediator in the crisis caused by the presidential poll, for which results have not yet been released.
He also told the BBC that his party had come close to an agreement with the ruling Zanu-PF to remove Mr Mugabe from power.
Mr Tsvangirai is adamant he won the presidential election outright. But the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission says it cannot release the results until it investigates anomalies - a partial recount takes place this weekend.
Government ministers suggest that a run-off may be needed, and the MDC says its activists in rural areas are being attacked ahead of that possible poll.
The independent Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights has said at least 200 people have been treated for severe injuries since last month's election.
'British machinations'
Thousands of people gathered at the Gwanzura Stadium in Highfield, a suburb of Harare, to hear Mr Mugabe speak at a rally celebrating the anniversary of Zimbabwe's independence from Britain and the end of white minority rule.
The 84-year-old played a key role in the 1970s war of independence and took power as Zimbabwe's first prime minister in 1980 on a wave of popular support.
[The UK and opposition] are trying to divide our people to create a weak society, a state of weakness to impose neo-colonial rule in our country
President Robert Mugabe
Many of those in the crowd wore T-shirts decorated with Mr Mugabe's portrait or held banners showing their support for his government's policies and denouncing the opposition and Britain.
"Defending our land from imperialists," said one poster, while another claimed "Zimbabwe has no place for sell-outs."
Mr Mugabe took to the stage to rapturous applause to celebrate the day on which the "nation finally shook off the chains of British racist settler colonialism".
"Our political history is well known, yet with time, we feel more challenged to recall it, especially for those who appear ignorant of it or are deliberately engaged in reversing the gains of our liberation struggle," he said.
"We, not the British, established democracy, based on one person, one vote."
Mr Mugabe called on Zimbabweans "to maintain utmost vigilance in the face of vicious British machinations and the machinations of our other detractors, who are allies of Britain".
"Whereas yesterday they relied on brute force to subjugate our people and plunder our resources, today they have perfected their tactics to more subtle forms," he warned.
"They throw money as a weapon, literally buying some of our people to turn against their government, accept being politically manipulated, and abandon their rights."
'Saddest day'
On Thursday, Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa accused Mr Tsvangirai of treason and working with the UK to bring about "regime change".
Morgan Tsvangirai talks to the BBC
The state-controlled Herald newspaper paper said the details were contained in a "memorandum of understanding" between the MDC leader and "various right-wing groups" in Zimbabwe and South Africa.
The UK embassy in Harare said the correspondence was "a forgery". Mr Tsvangirai also rejected the treason allegations, describing Mr Chinamasa as an "injustice minister" because he had lost his seat in parliament.
At a news conference in Johannesburg, Mr Tsvangirai said Zimbabwe was facing "the saddest independence day since our liberation from colonial rule" and that people were literally starving.
Later, Mr Tsvangirai told the BBC of the near-agreement between the MDC and Zanu-PF that would have removed President Mugabe.
"We were prepared to consider the issue of an inclusive government including some members of Zanu-PF," he said.
"In fact they were suggesting how many and they were talking about a panel from which we were going to choose."
The unity government talks failed when it became clear there were "others in the establishment who did not want to accept that", he said.
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