Veteran leader Robert Mugabe was sworn in as Zimbabwe's president for another five-year term on Thursday before a stadium packed with tens of thousands of jubilant supporters. Mugabe, 89, pledged "to observe, uphold and defend the constitution of Zimbabwe" in an oath administered by Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, extending his 33-year rule.
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Supporters clad in clothes emblazoned with the image of the man who has lead their nation since independence in 1980 filled the 60,000-seater venue, a show of force after elections many say were rigged.
Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai insists the July 31 vote was stolen and his party boycotted the inauguration. Tsvangirai's spokesman said the opposition leader "can't attend a robber's party."
Former colonial power Britain has called for an 'independent investigation' into the conduct of the election, which Mugabe officially won by a landslide.
Unlike previous low-key investitures, the event was replete with banners, flags and chants carried strong echoes of Mugabe's inauguration as prime minister of a newly independent Zimbabwe in 1980.
The absence of many neighbouring leaders, including President Jacob Zuma of regional power-broker South Africa, did little to dampen enthusiasm. Tanzania's Jakaya Kikwete, Namibia's Hifikepunye Pohamba and the Democratic Republic of Congo's Joseph Kabila were among those leaders who attended.
Mugabe was greeted in the stadium by thunderous cheers and whistling when he arrived with his wife on board a military truck.
Gates to the Chinese-built stadium, the venue of Mugabe's inauguration as president in 1987, opened shortly after dawn. The day was declared a public holiday, helping boost attendance. 
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