Politics

UN, US pressure South Sudan over elections

Published

3 years ago

March 9, 2022

The United Nations on Wednesday warned South Sudan’s leaders that the nation’s fragile peace process was under serious threat due to slow progress, calling for “fresh urgency” to revive negotiations.

The United Nations and United States urged the leaders of South Sudan to do more to prepare for elections due to be held in less than a year or risk “catastrophe.”

“As I have stated before, elections have the potential to be a nation-building moment, or a catastrophe,” the UN envoy for South Sudan, Nicholas Haysom, told the Security Council.

“Much depends on the political will and leadership of the South Sudanese working together,” he said.

The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, according to France24 said that in order to “work toward a true democracy,” the South Sudanese government needed to move swiftly to implement the provisions set out in an agreement on revitalizing the peace process.

“That means an inclusive constitution drafting process, public financial management reform, transitional security arrangements, and transitional justice mechanisms” she said.

“Unfortunately, the government of South Sudan is behind in meeting key electoral benchmarks” set out in the agreement, she added.

With a Security Council decision expected on March 15 on renewing the peacekeeping mission in South Sudan for a year — one of the most expensive on the UN’s books, with an annual budget exceeding $1 billion — Haysom pleaded for the deployment to remain at current levels of 17,000 troops and 2,100 police.

“We anticipate a mandate flexible enough to support the conduct of free and fair elections, upon the request of the government,” he said.

With less than a year until elections, South Sudan, which has been independent since only 2011, risks plunging back into war, the UN warned in February.

The youngest country in the world, it has experienced chronic instability since its independence from Sudan.

Between 2013 and 2018, it descended into a bloody civil war between sworn enemies Riek Machar and Salva Kiir, which left nearly 400,000 dead and millions displaced.

A peace deal signed in 2018 led to power-sharing in a national unity government sworn in February 2020, with Kiir as president and Machar as vice-president.

But the provisions of the peace agreement remain largely unimplemented, due mainly to persistent disputes between the two rivals.

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Politics

Tunisia: Presidential contender Zammel remains in detention despite being legally discharged

Published

1 day ago

September 6, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

After being arrested on Monday, and his release ordered by a judge on Thursday, Tunisian presidential contender, Ayachi Zammel, remained in custody as of Friday, his campaign staff reported.

Zammel is one of three candidates approved by Tunisia’s electoral commission for an Oct. 6 presidential election that opposition sources allege is rigged for President Kais Saied.

Authorities accuse him of electoral irregularities.

He was reportedly released from police custody for the first time before being re-arrested. But he remained in prison Friday, his campaign staff told Reuters. Mahadi Abdel Jawed: “Zammel was arrested minutes after his release last night.”

For next month’s election, he’s accused of fraudulent voter forms. All candidates must submit 10,000 supporter forms to run. He denies accusations.

Zammel says he is restricted and intimidated since he is a serious Saied competitor. He promises democracy, liberties, and economic recovery for Tunisia.

Saied was democratically elected in 2019, but he took power by fiat in 2021, which the opposition called a coup.

Major political forces argue that Saied’s rule has damaged Tunisia’s 2011 revolution’s democratic accomplishments.

Human rights groups and opposition parties have accused the government of employing arbitrary limitations to re-elect Saied.

Presidential elections in Tunisia are scheduled for October 6, 2024. These are the first presidential elections since President Kais Saied’s 2021 coup attempt.

Politics

Burundi launches much-awaited demographic census

Published

4 days ago

September 4, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Burundi’s National Census of the Population, Housing, Agriculture, and Livestock has begun as President Evariste Ndayishimiye urged citizens to provide accurate information to aid in project development.

The president of state urged Burundians and foreigners living in Burundi to be counted and to be truthful with information.

“Everyone must know that this census is important for the country and the population. Based on this census, we will be able to get the right state of the country, and its economic situation, and enable us to make good project plans, because it is difficult to plan for the future without knowing the current situation. I call on residents of Burundi to respond truthfully and honestly in the questionnaire because wrong information may hinder project planning,” the President said.

Census personnel, supervised by the president of the Central Bureau of the Census, Nicolas Ndayishimiye, registered President Ndayishimiye and his family at their home on Mt Vugizo in Bujumbura’s Kiriri Quarter.

Vice-President Prosper Bazombanza and his family also participated in the exercise on Monday, and he echoed the President’s message, adding that accurate data would aid in the design of education and other social services.

However, this year’s count has presented complications, with enumerators reporting difficulty locating certain residents due to abandoned homesteads.

The agents are also dealing with travel and accommodation issues as a result of delays in the disbursement of their allowances, and many have had to walk great distances during the day to reach residential neighbourhoods.

In a news briefing last week, Central Bureau of Census Director Nicolas Ndayishimiye stated that the government has set aside BIF66 billion ($22.85 million) to fund the activities, with the World Bank pledging an additional $6.5 million.

Burundi’s last population and housing census was done in 2008. The ongoing exercise is scheduled to end on September 15.

Since its independence in 1962, Burundi has undertaken three censuses: in 1979, 1990, and 2008. The country now has five provinces: Gitega, the political capital; Bujumbura, the economic capital; and Butanyera, Buhumuza, and Burunga.