A Zimbabwean politician has failed in a Pretoria High Court bid to become part of his country's settlement negotiations taking place in South Africa.

Judge Ephraim Makgoba dismissed with costs an urgent application by Justine Chiota, founder and leader of the Zimbabwe People's Party, on Tuesday evening.

Chiota sought an order to either allow him to participate in the talks or to stop the talks from continuing, pending the outcome of his Zimbabwe High Court application to quash the results of the presidential elections held in March in that country.

He inter alia cited President Thabo Mbeki and President Robert Mugabe as respondents.

In court papers, Chiota claimed he was entitled to take part in the political settlement negotiations following a ruling by a Zimbabwean court earlier this month.

Chiota contended he was wrongly excluded from participating in the Zimbabwean elections after his country's electoral commission refused to accept his nomination papers on the basis that they were "dirty".

He said a Zimbabwean court ruled in his favour, and ordered the electoral commission to declare that he had been duly nominated for the elections.

Mbeki opposed the application, saying the Pretoria High Court did not have the jurisdiction to pronounce on a matter outside the territorial jurisdiction of the court.

Sapa