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UN-DRCONGO-DIPLOMACY-VOTE
UN hopes Congolese can ‘freely’ vote after delay
UNITED NATIONS, United States, Dec 23, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – The United Nations
Security Council on Saturday said it hoped a week-long delay in DR Congo’s
election will allow Congolese “to express themselves freely” during the
ballot.
Presidential, legislative and provincial elections had been scheduled for
Sunday in the vast, volatile African country, defusing a two-year crisis over
the future of President Joseph Kabila.
But on Thursday the Independent National Election Commission (CENI) ordered
the postponement, saying a warehouse fire had destroyed voting materials.
“The members of the Security Council expressed their hope that this delay
will permit the creation of favorable conditions for the Congolese people to
express themselves freely” on December 30, the 15-member Council said in a
statement.
It also “called on all parties to engage peacefully and constructively in
the electoral process,” to ensure “a transfer of power in accordance with the
Congolese Constitution and the 31 December 2016 Agreement.”
Kabila, 47, was due to step down at the end of 2016 after reaching the end
of his constitutionally-limited two terms in office. But he stayed on,
invoking a caretaker clause in the constitution.
Elections were postponed until the end of 2017 under a deal brokered by the
powerful Catholic church — and then again until 2018, when Kabila eventually
confirmed he would not run again.
The delay sparked protests that were bloodily suppressed and sparked an
outcry from Western nations and the UN.
In its statement, the Security Council reiterated the readiness of MONUSCO,
the UN peacekeeping mission in DR Congo, “to provide support if requested.”
Kinshasa has several times said it wants to organize the elections without
financial aid or logistical support from the European Union or the UN.
BSS/AFP/SSS/1431 hrs