Gabon – Let’s prevent the post-election crisis from dragging on#Gabon
We, AfricTivistes, are closely following the situation in Gabon following the presidential election of 27 August 2016, in which 628,000 voters were called upon to choose between incumbent President Ali Bongo and the united opposition candidate, Jean Ping.
In this context, the National Autonomous and Permanent Electoral Commission (CENAP) declared Ali Bongo re-elected, with 49.80% of the votes cast, against 48.23% for Jean Ping.
The announcement sparked an outpouring of anger across the country. The opposition and civil society dispute Ali Bongo’s re-election, which they describe as an electoral theft.
The government acknowledges 3 deaths, 105 injuries and 1,000 arrests. The opposition, for its part, reports at least 50 deaths.
Several opposition leaders were held for several days at Jean Ping’s campaign headquarters following the raid on it. They were released only after the international community intervened.
In this tense political climate, the European Union, which monitored the election, and the United Nations called for the publication of the official tally sheets and a recount of the votes in order to resolve the dispute between the political actors. This approach does not appear to suit the authorities in power.
It should be recalled that Ali Bongo’s election in 2009 was disputed by the opposition and was followed by a week of riots in Port-Gentil, the country’s economic capital.
To prevent the crisis in Gabon from escalating, we, AfricTivistes, add our voice to that of the international community, expressing the same concerns and proposing solutions for a positive resolution of the situation.
To this end, AfricTivistes:
Expresses its solidarity with the people of Gabon during this ordeal;
Strongly condemns all forms of violence as a means of resolving this electoral dispute;
Protests against the brutal repression of unarmed demonstrators by the Gabonese security forces;
Calls for an independent investigation, supervised by Human Rights Watch, to shed light on human rights violations during this post-election crisis;
Calls on the international community as a whole to engage actively in helping the people of Gabon find a peaceful resolution to the current crisis;
Finally, calls on all parties to show restraint and prioritise dialogue as the only way to resolve this post-election crisis.
Issued in Dakar, 7 September 2016
For further information: info@africtivistes.org or +221 77 550 04 69
