Voters in the Central African Republic flocked to the polls on Wednesday in apparently peaceful elections seen as vital to restore stability after years of inter-religious bloodshed. The conflict has displaced more than a million people or 20 percent of the country’s total population.
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Mineral-rich but dirt-poor Central African Republic has been rocked by violence since long-serving president Francois Bozize was ousted in March 2013 by a mainly Muslim rebel alliance, the Seleka, which installed Michel Djotodia, the first Muslim head of state of a mostly Christian country. The National Electoral Authority stated lines have been moving until polling stations closed in Wednesday.’s vote.
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The elections which are expected to end a three-year civil war, were in principle supposed to have taken place in 2014, but the timetable was continuously changed due to persistence of violence in the country. However, voters and candidates remarked that names were missing from ballots and some materials were not available.
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Djotodia stepped down in early 2014 to be replaced by Samba-Panza – a Christian – amid a wave of sectarian violence between the two communities.
United Nations peacekeepers have been deployed to sensitive areas, 300 members of the armed forces on guard in the capital Bangui, and 1,800 police and gendarmes standing watch in other areas of the country.
Polls began to close at 5 p.m. (1600 GMT), though many continued to vote after a day that passed without violence.
Leading presidential candidates include former prime ministers Anicet-Georges Dologuele and Martin Ziguele, who received a boost on Tuesday when anti-balaka militias who have formed the Central African Party of Unity and Development said they would support his candidacy. “But, you see, we all are voting in dignity and peace and I am proud”, she said.
A man casts his ballot during elections in Bangui, Central African Republic, Dec. 30, 2015. Dealing with disarmament and bolstering the decimated economy will be among the priorities for the newly elected president of the Central African Republic. The Seleka eventually ceded power amid worldwide pressure to form a transitional government, which was tasked with steering the nation to elections.
During a referendum on a new constitution this month, gunmen attacked voters in the capital and elsewhere.
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The 11,000-strong UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) is working to reinforce security and prevent “any possible disruption to the election process”, he added.
