Elections in the Great Lakes: Analysis of the Polls in Burundi and Rwanda and Post- Electoral Prospects

Transcription

1 Summary Report ISS PUBLIC SEMINAR SERIES Elections in the Great Lakes: Analysis of the Polls in Burundi and Rwanda and Post- Electoral Prospects Wednesday August 11, 2010, 9:30 am 13:00 pm Hilton Hotel Addis Ababa, Ethiopia The African Conflict Prevention Programme (ACPP) of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Addis Ababa Office convened a public seminar entitled: Analysis of the Polls in Burundi and Rwanda and Post-Electoral Prospects August 11, 2010, Hilton Hotel. Ambassador Olusegun Akinsanya, Office Director, ISS-Addis Ababa warmly welcomed the public seminar participants and thanked the panelists for honoring. He particularly expressed his appreciation for the presence of the H.E. Mr. Edouard Nduwimana, Minister of Interior of the Republic of Burundi and other distinguished Ambassadors. He noted that the ISS encourages informed discussion between Researcher, and policy makers adding that the ISS Monthly Public Seminar Series provide a platform for sharing information on Africa's peace and security agenda. The aim is to stimulate quality discussion, in-depth and constructive interaction between participants. Opening Remarks In her opening remarks H.E. Mrs. Epiphanie Kabushemeye-Ntamwana, Ambassador of the Republic of Burundi, noted that election is one of the processes by which the people express their democratic rights. She said that the recent election in Burundi was observed by both national and international observers. It was conducted in peaceful manner. She also referred to the election process and voters turn out which is 1

2 close to 92 percent. She also indicated that the opposition parties, however, complained of riggings and massive fraud have not been substantiated to date. In his own remarks, H.E. Mr. Edouard Nduwimana, Minister of Interior of the Republic of Burundi expressed his appreciation for being invited to speak at the seminar. He said that in recent times opposition parties in many African countries have tendencies of rejecting the results of the election and the practice negatively impacts on the new and emerging political culture of democracy. He stressed that the opposition parties should be willing to accept the outcomes of the election instead of resorting to violence and conflicts. He talked about the processes of the election and said that there were forty four political parties taking part in the Burundi election. He also indicated that the processes of election before the pooling day were very important. It is during this period that people develop a culture of co-existence, free expression of their rights and political tolerance. He noted that the Government of Burundi invited international observers a year before the Election Day. This shows the commitment of the incumbent government to conduct a free and fair election. The pre-election also went very well with some discrepancies involving a few political parties that boycotted the election. In his remarks, H.E. Prof. Joseph Nsengimana, Ambassador of the Republic of Rwanda, discussed the concepts and practical application of democracy, election and ideology. He noted that the concept of democracy means different things to different people and that it is a much contested concept and practice. He indicated that democracy needs to have a national color of each country. This can be achieved by internalizing democracy, instead of externalizing in the African context. In discussing elections, he said that to conduct a free and fair election there is a need to level the playing field. Both the incumbent government and the opposition parties should have access to media, human, material and financial means. The other factor is justice and equity that should be respected during the election periods. He also said that the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) have a key role to play. The CSOs should not support the opposition parties and be dictated by international observers. He further stressed the need to build national ideology. Imported ideology from the West should not be incorporated directly without considering the national context. He firmly pointed out 2

3 that there is a need to form a National Ideology which could serve as a basis for democratic election. He further pointed out that democracy and election need to be integrated into culture and not driven by external forces. He added that Africa needs a system of value, ideology and political culture. He said that in Rwanda, parties should not be formed on the basis of ethnicity. The constitution does not allow parties to be formed on the ethnic lines. The other commendable achievement of the Rwandan Constitution he mentioned is a constitutionally enshrined Power Sharing mechanism that meant even if one party wins in a landslide victory, it shall share power. This mechanism avoids the monopoly of power by one groups or ethnicity. The Ambassador said that the election was free and fair. He cited the reports by international organizations which says the election has been peaceful, wellorganized, free and fair He further mentioned the Common Wealth report which also states that the Rwandan s election was well organized and peaceful Presentations Mrs. Jamila El Abdellaoui, Senior Researcher, African Conflict Prevention Programme (ACPP), ISS-Addis Ababa made a presentation on Burundi s 2010 Elections: Overview of Developments in the Run-up and During the Polls. She discussed the overview of the 2010 election by elaborating on the early developments, key actors of the election, key programmatic issues. She also dealt with the 2010 communal, presidential and legislative elections. She pointed out the early developments of the election by noting that there were restriction of activities and movements of political parties. The CSOs were also facing arrests and intimidation. She further noted that some of the points of contention on the draft revised electoral code in related to sequencing of the polls, amount of money to be deposited by candidates and voting modalities. Fight against corruption, creating employment opportunities (diversification of agriculture-based economy) and management of state institutions (reforming the public sector) were the major issues of debate and discussion during electoral campaigns. She noted that generally election boycotts rarely prove effective. In the case of Burundi, the opposition strongly counted on the backing of the international community, amongst others. By maintaining their boycott, their aim was to delegitimize the remaining parties in the race and the process as a whole. Burundi will present an interesting case in terms of the role of the 3

4 international community. She pointed out the need to look into the possibility that the international community played a big role in raising hopes for victory amongst the opposition by simply pronouncing their expectations. By way of conclusion, she observed that there was a need to strengthen political parties and to critically assess the role of the international community and address the issue of public financing of political parties, as well as examine the incumbent government s response to opposition s reaction, and positive role played by media and civil society. Mr. Jean Marie Vianney Kavumbagu, President, Civil Society Coalition for Election Monitoring, Bujumbura, Burundi made a presentation on Elections in Burundi: Issues and Challenges His discussion mainly reflected the views of the civil society by analyzing some very relevant empirical data. Regarding the election process he noted that the Electoral Code of Burundi (n.1/22 Act of September 18, 2009 amending the Act of April 20, 2005 n.1/15 on Electoral Code,) provides a marathon five electoral votes: namely Municipal elections, presidential, legislative Senate and hilly (May-September) in 2010: controversy single ballot and multiple form Support representative of political parties. He indicated that Electoral law for municipal elections overshadowed by the presidential election. The election was conducted in calmness and serenity. However, some serious problems such as lack of materials in some pooling stations, communication flaws, voting booth with no guarantee for the secrecy of the voting, voters are confused and intimidated and attempts to influence voters on the rank were observed. Around 12 opposition parties have united to create the Democratic Alliance for Change called ADC-Ikibiri. They demand the dissolution of the INEC, the cancelation of the results and hold new elections. However, the INEC and its components refuted all these charges and invalidate all the claims. He further noted that there are divergent views in Brundi, those who advocate change and others rather vehemently emphasized continuity. Since the government is immersed in corruption, injustice and human right violation, there was a need for change in the administration. On the other extreme, some people argue that continuity is what is needed. The incumbent government needs to get reasonable time to make socioeconomic and political changes. He also highlighted that the issue of ethnicity was critical in defining the political landscapes. 4

5 Mr. Alphonse Nkuosi, Media/Political Governance Analyst, Rwanda Governance Advisory Council, Kigali, Rwanda, made a presentation on Rwanda: Pre and post- Presidential Elections Political Pluralism and Space. The presentation was to share the perception of Rwandans in the pre Elections period around key areas. He presented the findings of the research by analyzing the state of political pluralism and political landscape. The study was based on research conducted by a questionnaire that includes the following questions: What is your opinion on the following? In Rwanda, there is political pluralism and political space In Rwanda, there is political pluralism and political space In Rwanda, to what extent the democratic principles are respected? Do you agree that in Rwanda there is power sharing? Are you satisfied in the way the power sharing is done? The other questions were related to the independence of the parliament, the judiciary system, The study found out that most of the responses of the Rwandans are positive to the above stated questions. For example, in relation to political pluralism and space around 35 and 45 percent strongly agree and agree that there is a political culture which creates political pluralism. However, he mentioned that there is clear mismatch between some media/ngo discourse and internal Rwandan appreciation. He stated that democracy is when Rwandans choose peace over violence, or when they choose development, good health, education, roads and good standards of living. In his presentation it was mentioned that many development activities like education, road construction and the likes were making the living standard of the society better. As a way forward, Rwandans are determined to defend, the achievements recorded by the RPF government, including unity and reconciliation as well as development and its pillars, at any cost. Discussion The floor was then opened for question, suggestion and comments. This session was lively and robust, reflecting the different views. The panelists further elaborated and exchanged views and analysis with the participants on the questions raised and remarks forwarded. 5

6 Closing Remarks In his closing remark and recap, Mr. Mehari Taddele Maru, Programme Head, African Conflict Prevention Programme, ISS Addis Ababa, thanked the panelists and participants for their contribution. He remarked that despite the disputes on the outcomes of both elections, the high turn out of the electorates were encouraging in conducting credible elections and building civilized culture of pluralism in Africa. He pointed out that the presentations and discussion that ensued could be seen in relation to the three phases of election namely; pre-election, during or on the Election Day and post election. While pre-election problems relate to the available space for political competition, the problem of boycotting elections as highlighted during the presentations constitutes the major problem during pre-election. While it is commendable that African political parties are increasingly becoming responsive to their electorate than to the international community, the disagreements on the space for political competition would remain a serious challenge for Africa. The institutional dimension of election, the role of media, civil society and the election commission were also discussed at length as vital issue for pre-election phase. Most of the arguments and contention arise during election and post election phase. This he pointed out has to do with high expectation for change and frustrations that follow when the expectations are not met. The trend in recent election in Africa seems to dispute results as being rigged and attempt to discredit the election results in its entirety. Technical problems related to balloting are also serious capacity problems. In this regard, Mehari, pointed out the role of institutions of global and regional governance such as UN and AU as well as Regional Economic Communities is also being redefined in the recent time. International actors are taking a subsidiary role of complementing national capacities to monitor and observe election. This, as he, pointed out was an important development. In general, divided voters create divided mandate for political groups and diminished legitimacy to rule and these calls for more inclusive political culture in a post-election phase. He ended his concluding remarks on the note that Africa is increasingly charting its own destiny, and these can be seen from these and other recent electoral process all over Africa. 6