Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai probably exercised his only option Monday when he announced that his Movement for Democratic Change would not take part on Friday in the scheduled runoff election against strongman Robert Mugabe. Tsvangirai said Mugabe had preordained a victory for himself and his ZANU-PF party and that too many of Tsvangirai's supporters were being killed or beaten.

It is a shame Zimbabwe's election came to that, but Mugabe, once viewed by most of the continent as a liberation hero, and his government are fully to blame. Whatever options there are for the international community should be exercised to the fullest.

Tsvangirai fled to the Dutch Embassy in the Zimbabwe capital, Harare, for his own safety. He had every reason to be concerned for himself and his persecuted followers. He had returned to Zimbabwe from South Africa, where he had fled after receiving at least a plurality of votes in the March 29 presidential election against Mugabe. Somehow, Mugabe managed to claim enough votes to force a runoff. Tsvangirai and his followers had been under siege since, with a number of future leaders of Tsvangirai's party being singled out and killed. Mugabe himself declared he would not give up power no matter what the results of the runoff. Even though the United States and Great Britain are attempting to gain support for a U.N. Security Council condemnation of Mugabe and his government, the only real hope is for Zimbabwe's southern African neighbors, particularly South Africa, to apply economic and political pressure. Some neighboring leaders have talked about a transition government for Zimbabwe, which would not include Mugabe. If Zimbabwe's leaders care at all about preserving their nation and helping their desperate people, it is something they should act on.

Reprinted from The San Diego Union-Tribune.