The US has terminated funding to three Zimbabwean human rights and pro-democracy groups three weeks before an election, a move that analysts say could undermine the credibility of the country’s first post-Mugabe vote.USAID, Washington’s aid arm, said the decision to pull the plug followed a regular internal audit that uncovered "unusual activity" and "noncompliance" in the use of funds, without providing any details.The affected groups are the Zimbabwe Human Rights Association, Counselling Services Unit (CSU), a clinic that provides medical treatment to victims of police torture and abuse, and Election Resource Centre (ERC).Alongside its broader voter education work, the ERC has been working on an independent audit of the July 30 election’s register of voters, a list that has been at the centre of vote-rigging allegations in the past.The credibility of the voters roll and the election, eight months after the removal of long-time president Robert Mugabe in a de facto military coup, i...
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