The warnings come after reports that mass demonstrations demanding the President's exit have been planned for next moth. A number of opposition political parties have also formed a union to challenge Taylor's grip on power. But key exiled opposition leaders have been charged with treason, with the President vowing to personally arrest them if they return home. Thus he is already setting the tune of the elections before the date. Intimidation of journalists and human rights groups continue, with former US President Jimmy Carter recently shutting down his pro-democracy center in frustration and charging the regime with abuses and the destabilization of the region.
Protests are the monopoly of the government.
Since the elections, the only demonstrations allowed are those organized and sponsored by the government against its opponents. Many critics have been forced into exile. In the absence of a democratizing environment, armed incursions aimed at overthrowing the regime have become frequent, with the latest incursion into Nimba County, Taylor's stronghold from where he launched his uprising in 1989, being the fourth in three years. The only factor that has minimized the possibility of a full-scale war is the lack of resources for dissidents. If a country like Guinea had been backing the dissidents as Taylor alleges, there is no doubt the war would have spread.