Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) on Wednesday called on the government to introduce more electoral reforms which it says will help level the political playing field and restore public confidence in the electoral system.

In a report on the March 31 parliamentary election, the MDC said the reforms would allow for free and fair elections in future as it claims the recent election, in which it lost to the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (ZANU-PF) party, was rigged.

"If future elections in Zimbabwe are to stand any chance of being free and fair, and adhere to Southern African Development Community (SADC) standards, the current government needs to implement comprehensive electoral reforms and take immediate steps to fully open up the democratic space and restores people's basic rights and freedoms," it said.

"There needs to be a collective effort by all stakeholders to advance the process of democratization in Zimbabwe."

The opposition party acknowledged the reforms implemented by the government prior to the March 31 election, which include voting in one day, use of translucent ballot boxes and awarding all political parties access to the public media as per SADC principles and guidelines.

Reforms, which need to be implemented, the MDC said, include the establishment of "a truly independent electoral commission," abolition of the Electoral Supervisory Commission, ensuring unhindered access to the entire electoral process by political parties and observers and permitting "assisted" voters to select a person of their own choice.

"A truly independent electoral commission under the Constitution which will have exclusive control of all election matters, including voter registration, the delimitation of constituency boundaries and the compilation of the voters' roll, should be created," the party said.

The MDC garnered 41 seats in the recent election, compared to the ruling ZANU-PF party's 78 seats and one won by an independent of the 120 contested seats in parliament.

The party has refused to accept the outcome of the election which, the bulk of observer missions, including the African Union and SADC missions have said reflects the true will of the people of Zimbabwe.