Anger at Zimbabwe UN envoy snub

Harare, 29 Oct-(ANA)-The UN's torture investigator has made an angry return to South Africa after being refused entry to Zimbabwe.

Manfred Nowak was detained by officials in Harare who said he had no clearance to visit, despite his insistence he had an invite from the prime minister.

"I have never in any other country been treated in such a manner," Mr Nowak, who had planned a week-long fact-finding mission, told the BBC.

He blamed his treatment on the divisions within the unity government.

"This is a major incident because you can't on the one hand invite a special rapporteur to meet the prime minister and on the other hand somebody gives an order to the immigration police not to let me in," Nowak said.

His said his treatment showed there were clearly parts of the government who did not want him to assess "the current conditions of torture", and promised to file a strongly worded complaint. (ANA)

FA/ANA/29 October 2009---