 KINSHASA, Congo (AP) - An unmarked ballot wafts in the breeze. Congolese election workers doze. Pieces of concrete weigh down stacks of vote tally sheets, keeping them from blowing away. A week after Congo's presidential elections unfolded in relative peace, experts say the disorder and chaos that has long hobbled the Central African country is creeping into the tallying - raising questions about the fairness of the outcome.
| Remember this next time someone rails about how evil US elections are, when people can't tell the difference between Al Gore from Pat Buchanan in West Palm Beach. |
"There was widespread chaos at counting centers," said Human Rights Watch's Anneke Van Woudenberg, one of nearly 2,000 international observers in Congo for the election and vote count. "There's a possibility for significant tampering."
| Thanks Anneke, now go to lunch and make yourself more useless. |
Suspect results could be used as an excuse for war - particularly as several candidates are former rebels with personal militias. Some candidates already are alleging fraud, and the seeming disorder at ballot-collecting centers could give their accusations momentum among Congo's 58 million people.
| Oh, ya think? Former rebels might go back into the field if they don't get the results they want? |
The July 30 elections were meant to let Y'urp-peon NGOs feel good about themselves end a transitional government led by President Joseph Kabila, who arranged the national unity administration in 2002 to halt six years of near-constant war. Turnout was 80 percent of the 25 million registered voters.
Riots have broken out in some places since the vote because the election commission has had trouble paying its workers. Observers also have complained about limits on voting monitors, poor security at counting centers and a lack of oversight. "There are some difficulties. We're missing materials. We have no transportation. It's hard and the conditions are terrible," said Guy Mukadi Nkongolo, a worker at one of dozens of centers where votes are being tallied, cross-checked and baled for storage. "But we're patient. Even if we have some small imperfections, for me it's OK," the 30-year-old Nkongolo said. |