The fiercely fought campaign began on June 29th and involved no less than 9,707 parliamentary candidates and 33 presidential candidates. Canvassing ended yesterday with a mass rally in support of the current president Joseph Kabila . International observers, such as the Carter Centre , expressed concern that the incumbent President's domination of the media would undermine the campaign. Several hundred people protested at alleged irregularities in the polls on the 18th of July, which ended in 7 people being killed in police clashes. One candidate has also fled to Uganda after violence. This Thursday, 6 people were killed in election related incidents in the capital, Kinshasa , and yesterday, Kabila's presidential guards killed an opposition candidate's bodyguard in a gunfight. The U.N. has deployed it's largest ever peacekeeping force – 17,000 – to monitor the elections, costing over $460 million. Despite troubles, the deputy U.N. representative in the country, Ross Mountain, said the Democratic Republic is ready for tomorrow's polls.
The fiercely fought campaign began on June 29th and involved no less than 9,707 parliamentary candidates and 33 presidential candidates. Canvassing ended yesterday with a mass rally in support of the current president . International observers, such as the , expressed concern that the incumbent President's domination of the media would undermine the campaign. Several hundred people protested at alleged irregularities in the polls on the 18th of July, which ended in 7 people being killed in police clashes. One candidate has also fled to Uganda after violence. This Thursday, 6 people were killed in election related incidents in the capital, , and yesterday, Kabila's presidential guards killed an opposition candidate's bodyguard in a gunfight. The has deployed it's largest ever peacekeeping force – 17,000 – to monitor the elections, costing over $460 million. Despite troubles, the deputy U.N. representative in the country, Ross Mountain, said the Democratic Republic is ready for tomorrow's polls.
D
Joseph Kabila
D
Carter Centre
D
Kinshasa
D
U.N.