Congo Elections: The Vote Count Goes On
August 2

While scattered bouts of violence did occur, the Congo’s first multi-party election went off fairly well, reports Jeffrey Gettleman in the New York Times. The UN-supervised election is seen by many as a bid for peace in the region, but it will be quite some time before results are known. According to Gettleman, the election was the largest and most complicated the UN has ever run, and due to the sheer complexity official results will not be available for weeks.

While the election offered plenty of choice (with 9,700 candidates running for the national assembly and 33 for president), Gettleman reports that some people doubt whether the choice was a meaningful one. A number of the largest opposition parties boycotted because they believed the election was fixed by the politicians in power. Several warlords ran despite allegations of grave human rights violations. Gettleman tells the story of one man, Vemba Kumbu, who looked the ballot and shook his head. “I’d like to vote,” he said. “But I don’t really see anyone I want to vote for.”

The leading candidate for the presidency is Joseph Kabila, the incumbent. He assumed the office in 2001 after his father was assassinated, and is now attempting to legitimize his power. A self-styled “artisan of peace,” Kabila reconciled with the warlords and incorporated them into his interim government.

The greatest concern, Gettleman says, is not who will win, but how the losers will behave. Some officials within the current government are hoping for a run-off for Mr. Kabila because a clear win could be interpreted by many as proof that the election was rigged.

Despite all of this, many Congolese believe the election is worth the trouble. Gettleman tells of one man who walked barefoot for over two hours in order to vote.

“It was not a difficult walk,” the man said. “It was for a good reason.”