Police fired tear gas to disperse dozens of protesters who blocked roads and burned tires in Beni, one of three cities where elections have been delayed due to terrorism and an ongoing Ebola outbreak.
Voters in the cities of Beni, Butembo and Yumbi will not be able to cast their ballots until March, the Independent National Election Commission (CENI) said Wednesday, prompting street protests a day after.
Anti-riot policemen were deployed in response to street protests in Goma and Butembo, two cities surrounding Beni, on Thursday morning as angry demonstrators, mainly supporters of opposition parties, took to the streets to protest their exclusion from Sunday’s polls. Protesters also barricaded major roads by using stones to block vehicles.
Supporters of opposition candidate Martin Fayulu, a strong contender in the presidential race, also marched to CENI headquarters in the capital city of Kinshasa on Thursday.
But a spokesman for the electoral body said Wednesday at a news conference in Kinshasa that the decision to delay voting in those areas was “legal.”
Sunday’s vote to pick a successor to President Joseph Kabila follows a violent campaign season amid a tense backdrop of conflict between militant groups and government forces.
Source : Nbcnewyork