Nauru President Baron Waqa loses bid for re-election

Updated

Results from the Nauru Electoral Commission show the incumbent President of Nauru has lost his bid to return to power.

Key points: Nauru's incumbent President Baron Waqa lost his parliamentary seat in the national election

His government was accused of trying to artifically boost numbers by granting foreigners citizenship

There was speculation Finance Minister David Adeang was bidding to oust Mr Waqa by backing a rival candidate

Baron Waqa has not been re-elected for a seat in his constituency of Boe during the national election that took place on Saturday.

The 59-year-old had held the presidential title since 2013.

More than 7,000 voters were registered to take part in the poll to determine who will govern for the next three years.

Voters elect members from their constituencies which make up Nauru's Parliament of 19 members.

Those members will ultimately decide who should hold the presidency.

In the run-up to the election, there was speculation that the country's Finance Minister, David Adeang, was bidding to oust Mr Waqa by backing a rival candidate in his constituency.

Roland Kun, a former Nauruan minister who fled to New Zealand and now lives in Australia, told the ABC that new candidates had been installed in the Boe constituency before the election.

"In Baron's constituency there's another candidate who has been put up by David Adeang, the Minister for Finance, and he's putting his support behind that candidate instead of his colleague in the Government," he said.

"We know what that's about because from our standpoint, David is pursuing the presidency."

"I think [the election result] is a very clear message that people do want change," he said on Sunday afternoon.

Pacific expert Tess Newton Cain, who has worked for the United Nations and World Bank in the region, also highlighted the fact that two of the 19 members of parliament are women.

"This is a significant achievement for Nauru in a region where women are not really well represented in national parliament."

Mr Waqa was contesting his constituency against four other candidates, with two of them, Asterio Appi and Martin Hunt, elected to Parliament.

Another candidate in his constituency Mathew Batsiua, a former foreign minister and member of the Nauru 19, was not elected and came fourth.

Will the result impact Australia's offshore processing policy?

Nauru became the site of Australia's first offshore processing centre in 2001 under the so-called "Pacific Solution".

The country now draws a sizeable amount of its revenue from the visa fees it charges Australia per asylum seeker, payments and taxes associated with the regional processing centre, as well as aid.

Mr Waqa's government favoured keeping the controversial centre open in Nauru, and the change in government now has the potential to significantly impact Australian asylum policy.

"While the [offshore processing centre] makes significant contributions to the economy of Nauru, that is obviously declining as the centre gets smaller… I think whoever takes over government will be looking at what's next for Nauru in terms of replacing those revenue streams as they dwindle," Ms Newton Caine told the ABC.

Mr Kun believed there would be no immediate changes to the offshore processing centre because the government still had no "fallback plan".

Government accused of 'number-boosting'

Mr Waqa's Government was accused of artificially boosting its support by granting citizenship to around 118 foreigners.

One Nauru-born campaign worker told the ABC that these new citizens are mainly Chinese people employed by the Government.

"It's been posted on Facebook, new names of these Chinese people," said a former Treasury worker who was dismissed for criticising Mr Waqa's Government and who asked to remain anonymous.

"They've been approached with some sort of application with a police clearance and medical check-ups, and it's just like that, overnight you're a citizen."

Ms Newton Cain said it was "hard to see how [the number boosting] couldn't have had an impact on the election."

"There are only 7,000 voters in Nauru and as we can see from the results, a number of these seats are won by a very small number — in the hundreds in a number of cases.

"Any additions to the roll are likely to have an impact," she said.

Mr Kun said voters had been "very upset" by the new names on the electoral roll and had raised their concerns "all around the country" in the lead-up to the election.

Joseph Cain, Nauru's electoral commissioner, told the ABC the new citizens had to be included in the electoral roll.

"The gazette for these new citizens was published at 16.58 on 3 August, two minutes before the roll closed," he said.

"Because the gazette was published before the close of the roll, I am required to obey the law and place these new citizens on the electoral roll."

Topics: government-and-politics, elections, community-and-society, immigration, nauru

First posted </s> Results from the Nauru Electoral Commission show the incumbent President of Nauru has lost his bid to return to power.

Baron Waqa has not been re-elected for a seat in his constituency of Boe during the national election that took place on Saturday.

Mr Waqa had held the presidential title since 2013.

More than 7,000 voters were registered to take part in the poll to determine who will govern for the next three years.

Voters elect two members from their constituencies which make up Nauru's Parliament of 19 members.

Those members will ultimately decide who should hold the presidency.

Mr Waqa's Government was accused of artificially boosting its support by granting citizenship to Chinese nationals who work in their offices.

More to come. </s> Sydney: Nauru President Baron Waqa was voted out of office in the tiny South Pacific island nation after six years in power, media reports said on Sunday.

Waqa was beaten in his seat of Boe in a national election on Saturday. He contested the seat against four other candidates, two of whom won seats in Nauru's 19-member parliament, the ABC reported.

Sixty candidates contested the election, seeking the support of 7400 registered voters. Final results were expected later on Sunday.

Political instability has plagued Nauru in the past but the previous election in 2016 was deemed by Commonwealth observers to be transparent and fair. </s> Results from the Nauru Electoral Commission show the incumbent President of Nauru has lost his bid to return to power.

Baron Waqa has not been re-elected for a seat in his constituency of Boe during the national election that took place on Saturday.

Mr Waqa had held the presidential title since 2013.

More than 7000 voters were registered to take part in the poll to determine who will govern for the next three years.

Voters elect members from their constituencies which make up Nauru’s Parliament of 19 members.

Those members will ultimately decide who should hold the presidency.

In the run up to the election there was speculation that the country’s Finance minister, David Adeang, was bidding to oust Baron Waqa by backing a rival candidate in his constituency.

Ronald Kun, a former Nauruan minister who fled to New Zealand, told the ABC that new candidates had been installed in the Boe constituency before the election.

“In Baron’s constituency there’s another candidate who has been put up by David Adeang, the Minister for Finance, and he’s putting his support behind that candidate instead of his colleague in the Government,” he said.

“We know what that’s about because from our standpoint, David is pursuing the presidency.”

Mr Waqa was contesting his constituency against four other candidates, with two of them, Asterio Appi and Martin Hunt, elected to Parliament.

Another candidate in his constituency Mathew Batsiua, a former foreign minister and member of the Nauru 19, was not elected and came fourth.

Mr Waqa’s Government was accused of artificially boosting its support by granting citizenship to foreigners.

One Nauru-born campaign worker told the ABC that these new citizens are mainly Chinese people employed by the Government.

“It’s been posted on Facebook, new names of these Chinese people,” said a former Treasury worker who was dismissed for criticising Mr Waqa’s Government and who asked to remain anonymous.

Joseph Cain, Nauru’s electoral commissioner, told the ABC the new citizens had to be included in the electoral roll.

“The gazette for these new citizens was published at 16.58 on 3 August, two minutes before the roll closed,” he said.

“Because the gazette was published before the close of the roll, I am required to obey the law and place these new citizens on the electoral roll.” </s> Nauru’s president, Baron Waqa, has reportedly lost his seat in parliament.

Preliminary election results from his electorate of Boe show that Waqa, who has been president since 2013, lost out to Asterio Appi and Martin Hunt.

He only narrowly beat the former cabinet minister and serving opposition member Mathew Batsiua for third place.

The Nauru parliamentary election was held on Saturday. Seven thousand people voted to make up the 19-member parliament. Results from six of the eight electorates had been published by Sunday morning.

Batsiua was suspended from parliament in 2014 after publicly criticising the Waqa government and is a member of the Nauru 19, a group of protestors facing prosecution over a protest against the removal of Batsiua and two others from parliament.

The former president Ludwig Scotty, re-elected in May in a byelection, also lost his seat in the Anabar electorate, along with a fellow sitting MP, Riddell Akua. Elected in their place were Maverick Eoe and Pyon Deiye.

According to the official Republic of Nauru Twitter account, the home affairs minister, Charmaine Scotty, was re-elected in Yaren alongside Isabella Dageago.

Khyde Menke, Tawaki Kam and Lionel Aingimea were elected in Menang while Milton Dube was re-elected in Aiwo, alongside Rennier Gadabu. The opposition MP Marcus Stephen was re-elected in Anetan, as was newcomer Timothy Ika.

The former justice minister Roland Kun is out in Buada, with the government MP Shadlog Bernicke retaining his seat alongside Bingham Agir.

More to come </s> FILE PHOTO: Nauru President Divavesi Waqa addresses the General Assembly in New York

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Nauru President Baron Waqa was voted out of office in the tiny South Pacific island nation after six years in power, media reports said on Sunday.

Waqa was beaten in his seat of Boe in a national election on Saturday. He contested the seat against four other candidates, two of whom won seats in Nauru's 19-member parliament, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported.

Sixty candidates contested the election, seeking the support of 7,400 registered voters. Final results were expected later on Sunday.

Political instability has plagued Nauru in the past but the previous election in 2016 was deemed by Commonwealth observers to be transparent and fair.

The Micronesian nation, with a population estimated at about 11,300 people, once made its money from phosphate mining.

The island also hosts a controversial detention center housing asylum seekers on behalf of Australia, its biggest foreign aid donor.

Under Australian law, would-be asylum seekers intercepted trying to reach its shores by boat are sent for processing to offshore camps in Nauru and Papua New Guinea. </s> The president of Nauru has lost his bid to retain power in the tiny Pacific nation, losing his seat in a national election, Australian media reported Sunday.

Baron Waqa has been president since 2013 and his support was critical to hosting Australia’s asylum seeker detention facility on the island.

Waqa, 59, had failed to secure enough votes to hold on to his seat in Saturday’s election, according to preliminary returns to the Nauru Electoral Commission, Australia’s national broadcaster ABC reported.

A final announcement of the election result is expected on Monday.

Since 2001 Australia has placed asylum seekers, caught trying to reach Australia by boat, in the Nauru detention facility while their refugee status was processed.

Nauru made about a third of its national income from the arrangement.

Nauru is the world’s smallest republic, with just 7,000 people eligible to vote for the 19-member parliament that chooses the president.

It is the world’s third-smallest nation behind Vatican City and Monaco. </s> Nauru lawmakers were set to choose a new president after Baron Waqa failed to gather enough votes to stay in office, according to early results of the general election reported on Sunday.

Waqa has ruled the Micronesian nation of 11,300 for the last six years. He is a vocal proponent of the Australian refugee camp on the nation's territory, with Australia's fees providing Nauru with about a third of its national income.

Critics claim Waqa's administration has been moving against dissent, introducing strict anti-protest laws, occasionally curbing access to social media, and hindering international media from reporting fully on conditions inside the refugee camp. Last year, the country ordered Doctors Without Borders to stop working with asylum-seekers.

In Nauru, the president needs to win a seat in the 19-people parliament before being eligible for the highest office. However, voters apparently backed two of Waqa's rival candidates in his electorate of Boe, keeping him out of the assembly.

The final result is expected to be announced on Monday. The successor of the 59-year-old politician will only be known after a vote in the parliament. Current Finance Minister David Adeang is considered a favorite.

Nauru is the world's smallest republic and the third-smallest country in the world. While the Vatican City State and Monaco have an even smaller surface area, they do not choose their head of state at the ballot box.

Australia's payments are a major source of revenue in Nauru after the country exhausted its key phosphate deposits. Australia still keeps some 300 asylum-seekers in Nauru, down from a peak of about 1,200 five years ago. A similar camp in Papua New Guinea was closed in 2017.

Every evening, DW sends out a selection of the day's news and features. Sign up here. </s> Baron Waqa is a strong supporter of Australia's hardline policy of detaining refugees on the tiny Pacific island nation

LOST REELECTION. In this file photo, Nauru's President Baron Waqa listens to a speaker during the Smaller Islands States Leaders meeting as part of the Pacific Islands Forum in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, on September 7, 2015. Photo by Ness Kerton/AFP

WELLINGTON, New Zealand – Nauru's president, a strong supporter of Australia's hardline policy of detaining refugees on the tiny Pacific island nation, has lost his seat in a general election, official results showed on Sunday, August 25.

Voters went to the polls on Saturday and selected two rival candidates over Baron Waqa in his electorate of Boe, ending the 59-year-old's 6 years in office.

His successor will not be known until the 19-member parliament meets to choose a new president, with finance minister David Adeang considered a favorite after being reelected.

Waqa proved a controversial leader at times and Australia's Lowy Institute think tank last year said the country of 11,000 "lurched towards authoritarianism" under his leadership.

His government has made it difficult for international media visiting Nauru to report on conditions facing asylum seekers. (READ: Nauru orders MSF to stop work among asylum seekers)

It also introduced laws carrying heavy jail terms for political protesters and at times curbed access to sites such as Facebook, which critics said was aimed at curbing dissent.

Australia's policy of processing asylum seekers on Nauru – and the equally remote Manus island in Papua New Guinea – has proved an economic lifeline for a country which exhausted its previous source of wealth: phosphate deposits used as fertilizer.

Nauru's government revenues ballooned from Aus$20 million (US$13 million) in 2010-11 to Aus$115 million (US$77 million) in 2015-16 largely due to fees paid by Canberra linked to the asylum policy, official Australian data shows.

Refugee advocates estimate around 300 refugees remain on the island, down from a peak of about 1,200 in 2014.

Rights groups and the United Nations have consistently criticized the conditions faced by refugees, warning indefinite detention causes mental health problems and suicide attempts.

The Refugee Action Coalition said the latest incident occurred on Friday, when a Pakistani man it identified only as Jamal set himself on fire.

It said the man was believed to be in a critical condition in intensive care after being flown from Nauru to Brisbane for medical treatment.

"Jamal is another casualty of Australia offshore detention policy. After 6 years on Nauru, refugees have no secure future. They have lost hope," spokesman Ian Rintoul said.

"Over 300 refugees remain on Nauru, but the government has no resettlement plans." – Rappler.com
Voters in Nauru go to the polls to elect new members of parliament. President Baron Waqa loses his parliamentary seat so he is not able to be re-elected in the office he has been holding since 2013.