NAIROBI/MOMBASA, Kenya | Mon Mar 4, 2013 3:19pm EST
(Reuters) - At least 15 people were killed in attacks by machete-wielding
gangs on Monday as Kenyans voted in large numbers in the first presidential
election since a disputed 2007 poll unleashed weeks of tribal bloodshed.
Initial provisional results began trickling in moments after polls closed,
showing Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta slightly ahead of Prime
Minister Raila Odinga, with ballots in from 10 percent of the polling
stations, but it was still too early to predict the outcome.
Voting in the tight contest passed off largely peacefully across most of the
East African nation, although many of its 14.3 million voters were caught in
long lines.
The electoral authority said early indications showed turnout above 70
percent.
Officials and candidates have made appeals to avoid a repeat of the tribal
rampages that erupted five years ago when disputes over the result fueled
clashes between tribal loyalists of rival candidates.
More than 1,200 people were killed, shattering Kenya's reputation as one of
Africa's most stable democracies and bringing its economy, sub Saharan
Africa's fourth-largest, to a standstill.
Just hours before voting began, at least nine security officers in the
restive coastal region were hacked to death in two attacks, and six
attackers were killed, regional police chief Aggrey Adoli said.
Senior police officers blamed the attacks on a separatist movement,
suggesting different motives to those that caused the post-2007 vote ethnic
killings that could limit their impact.
SUSPECTED GRENADE
A suspected grenade attack on Monday at an election center in the eastern
town of Garissa near the Somali border caused panic among voters but no
injuries, a government official said.
Two civilians were shot dead in Garissa on Sunday, while a bomb blast in the
Mandera area near the border wounded four.
As in 2007, the race has come down to a high-stakes duel between two
candidates, this time between Kenyatta and Odinga, the loser in 2007 to
outgoing President Mwai Kibaki. Both contenders will depend heavily on votes
from their tribes.
The United States and Western donors are worried about the stability of a
nation that is an ally in the fight against militant Islam in the region.
They are also concerned about how to respond to a victory by Kenyatta, who
faces charges by the International Criminal Court of orchestrating violence
five years ago.
"If elected, we will be able to discharge our duties," said Kenyatta's
running mate, William Ruto who also faces charges of crimes against
humanity. "We shall cooperate with the court with a final intention of
clearing our names."
Some polling stations were still open because their opening was delayed and
some still had long lines. The election commission has seven days to
announce the official outcome. Polls suggest there could be a run-off,
provisionally set for April.
The European Union observer mission said turnout was high even at the coast
where the attacks took place.
SEPARATIST MOVEMENT
One of the attacks on Monday took place on the outskirts of Mombasa and
another in Kilifi about 50 km (80 miles) to the north. Police blamed a
separatist movement, the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC), which wanted the
national vote scrapped and a referendum on secession instead.
At the Kilifi site, a piece of paper lay on the ground with the words: "MRC.
Coast is not Kenya. We don't want elections. We want our own country.
But the group's spokesman denied responsibility and said it only sought
change by peaceful means.
Kenya's neighbors have been watching nervously, after their economies
suffered five years ago when violence shut down regional trade routes.
Adding to tension, the al Shabaab Islamist militant group battling Kenyan
peacekeeping troops in Somalia urged Muslims to boycott the vote in Kenya
and wage jihad against its military.
Voters were undeterred. In the early hours, some blew whistles and
trumpet-like "vuvuzelas" to wake up voters, and lines formed hours before
polls opened at 6 a.m.
"Our future is uncertain but we long for peace and victory is on our side
this time round," said Odinga supporter Eunice Auma, 32, in Kisumu, where
violence flared after 2007.
"However, should our candidate fail to clinch victory, I'm afraid violence
will erupt," she said.
Although Odinga and Kenyatta are well ahead of the other six contenders,
polls suggest they will struggle to secure an outright win, which could make
for a tense run-off. A narrow first-round victory for either could spark
legal challenges.
To try to prevent a repeat of the contested outcome that sparked the
violence after the December 2007 vote, a new, broadly respected election
commission is using more technology to prevent fraud, speed up counting and
increase transparency.
Alongside the presidential race, there are elections for senators, county
governors, members of parliament, women representatives in county assemblies
and civic leaders.
(Additional reporting by Hezron Ochiel in Kisumu, Noor Ali in Isiolo, Drazen
Jorgic, Beatrice Gachenge, Yara Bayoumy, Richard Lough, Duncan Miriri in
Nairobi; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by James Macharia, Philippa
Fletcher and Giles Elgood)
(Reuters) - Stone-throwing protesters clashed with police in Guinea's
capital Conakry on Monday and rioting spread to another city as main
opposition leaders boycotted a meeting called by President Alpha Conde after
days of unrest that has killed five people.
Hundreds of protesters have been injured since tensions over upcoming
legislative polls triggered days of unrest that began on Wednesday. Guinea's
notoriously ill-disciplined security forces have a history of brutal
crackdowns on protests.
Conde wants to discuss preparations for a long-delayed election that is
meant to complete a transition to civilian rule after a 2008 military coup.
He missed a deadline on Sunday for a presidential decree to officially call
the election for May 12.
Preparations for the vote, which is essential to unlock hundreds of millions
of dollars in European aid to the world's largest bauxite supplier, are
being hampered by opposition claims that the government is seeking to rig
the outcome.
A reduced opposition delegation, led by spokesman Aboubacar Sylla and former
prime minister Jean-Marie Dore, went to the talks on Monday with Conde, who
narrowly won a 2010 election.
"We put forward our demands and argued that today our country has need of
peace and development," Sylla said after the meeting. The opposition
reiterated its call to replace South African firm Waymark which manages the
electoral roll, he said.
A source who took part in the talks, and asked not to be named, said the
brief meeting was concluded after statements from both sides and did not
involve negotiation.
"This was simply a preliminary meeting to set a framework for dialogue,"
said government spokesman Damantang Albert Camara.
Earlier on Monday, the violent protests had spread to Labe, a fiefdom of
opposition leader Cellou Dalein Diallo, in central Guinea some 450 km (280
miles) from the coastal capital.
"We are showing our support for our dead and injured brothers in Conakry,"
said Yimbering Diallo, a Labe resident. "We demand free and fair elections."
In Conakry's Madina residential neighborhood close to the sprawling main
market, police fired teargas at protesters when traders gathered to protest
at the destruction and looting of their stalls.
In the Dixxin district, protesters blocked roads with barricades and burning
tires.
(Writing by Daniel Flynn; Editing by Louise Ireland)
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Received on Mon Mar 04 2013 - 17:25:07 EST
