28/7/2006
MEPs hopeful that Congolese elections will be a success

In spite of the difficult logistics in a country as vast as Western Europe and where democratic elections have not taken place for four decades, preparations for the presidential and parliamentary ballots in Congo appear to be going well. “We are impressed with the huge efforts the Congolese are making to ensure that all registered voters can cast their ballots next Sunday,” said Jürgen Schröder, who heads the European Parliament delegation monitoring the elections.

Jürgen Schröder (EPP-ED, DE) said that the 12-member delegation from Parliament shares the concerns expressed by the EU Election Observation Mission over the uneven access by candidates to the media and over the uneven possibilities to wage campaigns. Nevertheless, Mr Schröder said, the EP delegation is hopeful that the Congolese people will make the elections a success. Out of some 28 million possible voters, a little under 26 million people have registered to vote.  “We have spent the last few days going out into the field and meeting with long-term observers from the EU and we have seen that people are determined to make these elections a success.”
 
Mr Schröder stressed that the EU observers are in Congo only to observe and support the electoral and democratic process and not to favour any of the candidates or try and influence the proceedings. For that reason, the MEPs distanced themselves from remarks made last month by European development commissioner Louis Michel, which could be seen as support for a particular presidential candidate. “These remarks do not reflect in any way our commitment, or the commitment of the European Union as a whole, to impartiality and to our wish that the Congolese people after forty years may finally express their political will freely and openly”, they said. 
 
The EU has deployed some 300 long-term and short-term observers throughout Congo and has contributed €149 million towards the cost of the elections. The presidential elections are contested by 33 candidates, of whom incumbent president Joseph Kabila, vice-presidents Jean-Pierre Bemba, Azarias Ruberwa and Arthur Ngoma, as well as physician Oscar Kashala probably are the best known. Should no candidate obtain an absolute majority in the first round, then a run-off between the two candidates with the most votes will be held probably in October.
 
Preliminary findings on 2 August
 
Some 10,000 candidates will contest the 500 seats in parliament, distributed over 169 constituencies. The election results are not expected until mid-September. The Parliament delegation and the EU chief observer, French general and MEP Philippe Morillon (ADLE, FR), will hold a joint press conference to present their preliminary findings on 2 August.
 
The other members of the EP delegation are: Margrete Auken (Greens/EFA, DK), Robert Evans (PES, UK), Ana Gomes (PES, PT), Fiona Hall (ALDE, UK), Richard Howitt (PES, UK), Peter Olajos (EPP-ED, HU), José Pomés (EPP-ED, ES), Francesco Speroni (NI, IT), Ulrich Stockmann (PES, DE), Johan Van Hecke (ALDE, BE) and Zbigniew Zaleski (EPP-ED, PL).