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Ivory Coast votes in elections to end military rule |
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October 23, 2000
ABIDJAN (AP) - Ten months after an army coup shattered this nation's reputation for political tranquility and brought a military government to power, Ivory Coast was voting Sunday in presidential elections that the country's two largest parties were boycotting. Gen. Robert Guei, the military ruler who came to power during the December coup promising to quickly step down, faces serious competition from just one of his four opponents in the controversial vote; history professor and longtime opposition leader Laurent Gbagbo. Most candidates, including those from the country's two largest political parties, were disqualified last month by the Supreme Court. Turnout was light at many polling stations Sunday morning in Abidjan. It appeared to be nearly nonexistent in Korhogo, the main city in northern Ivory Coast and a stronghold of support for the now-disqualified opposition leader, Alassane Dramane Ouattara. Ouattara's Rally of the Republicans (RDR) and the former ruling Democratic Party of the Ivory Coast (PDCI), whose candidates were also excluded by the court, have both called for a boycott of the polls. Two polling stations in Korhogo had no people in line and another had just four waiting for voting to begin, one hour after the scheduled 8 a.m. (0800 GMT) opening. "As you can see, the north is sleeping through this election," said polling station worker, Drissa Dialo. Campaigning has been muted in Ivory Coast. Guei (GAY-ee), whose own soldiers have staged two mutinies since the coup and who, officials say, survived an assassination attempt in September, has barely appeared in public, apparently fearful of his security. But while he has thrown the weight of the junta behind his election, Guei has insisted he will step down if he loses. "Ivory Coast is a country of peace, where everything takes place in serenity," he said Sunday after voting at a primary school near his house, in an upscale residential neighborhood. Guei has seen his popularity wane since the heady days of the December coup, when cheering crowds filled the streets of some neighborhoods to welcome the ouster of President Henri Konan Bedie, who was widely seen as corrupt and ethnically divisive. But for some Ivorians, Guei is still seen as the only candidate who they believe can control Ivory Coast's thuggish and political divided security forces. "Without him, there would have been civil war," said one voter in Abidjan, Nicodeme Zan. Gbagbo (BAHG-bo), for his part, said he believed this West African nation would turn against Guei, who for many Ivorians is just a soldier wearing civilian clothing. "In Ivory Coast's present state, I find it unlikely that they will vote in a military man to head the government," he said just before casting his ballot. Gbagbo has warned his followers to watch for fraud during Sunday's balloting. The United Nations, the Organization of African Unity, the European Union and countries such as the United States and Canada have withdrawn election observers or funding to protest Guei's decision to run and the exclusion of major opponents. Ouattara, the country's best-known opposition candidate, was excluded because of what the Supreme Court said were questions over whether both his parents were of "Ivorian origin," as a new junta-backed constitution requires. The past year has seen Ivory Coast suffer through a series of crises that have badly blemished its longtime reputation for stability and relative wealth. Early results are expected to be announced late Sunday or early Monday.
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