Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY

A12 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 21 sepTember 2017
Boy killed at huge protests over Togo president’s tenure

By ERICK KAGLAN demonstrations. The ruling party voted Tues- Patrick Lawson, a spokes- showed openness.
Associated Press Thousands of people across day in favor of a draft bill man of the main ANC op- Thousands of ruling party
LOME, Togo (AP) — A the small West African na- that the opposition says position party, said the bill supporters also were in
10-year-old boy was killed tion have been demon- does not include a sen- introduced two weeks ago the streets Wednesday.
and 10 others injured in strating since last month tence outlining term limits did not take into account Some wore white T-shirts
Togo’s capital as hundreds for term limits on President for the president. the amendments the op- that read “Don’t touch my
of thousands of opposition Faure Gnassingbe, who has The bill will need be sub- position wanted. president.”While Gnassing-
supporters demonstrated been in power since his fa- mitted for a referendum “The country’s voting list is be has not said he would
Wednesday against a vote ther died in 2005. vote by the people next not credible. Besides, the run again in 2020, the op-
by the West African na- The Gnassingbe family has month before it is enforced electoral commission and position has said it suspects
tion’s parliament on a bill ruled the small West African as a law, parliament chair the constitutional court he will not step down un-
they fear will allow the pres- nation for 50 years. Dama Dramani said. have allegiance to the rul- less compelled to either
ident to run for more terms, Security forces killed at Opposition lawmakers ing party. through reforms in parlia-
the security minister said. least two people and in- have demanded the rein- So we don’t approve the ment or citizen protests-
Togo’s security minister Col. jured several others in dem- statement of Togo’s 1992 idea of a referendum,” Gnassingbe’s father ruled
Damehame Yark blamed onstrations in August, and Constitution in its original Lawson said. for 38 years.
opposition members for used tear gas to break up form, which only allowed Christophe Tchao, a Before his death, he modi-
the violence, saying they another peaceful protest a president to serve two spokesman for the ruling fied the Constitution to ex-
brought weapons to the this month. terms. party, said the party has tend his rule.q
Kenya Supreme Court nixed poll because it couldn’t see data

By TOM ODULA The electoral commission
Associated Press has set Oct. 17 as the date
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — for a fresh election.
Kenya’s Supreme Court Explaining why it annulled
said Wednesday it nullified Kenyatta’s win, the Su-
President Uhuru Kenyatta’s preme Court said its order
re-election largely be- to view the computerized
cause the electoral com- data was “a golden op-
mission refused to allow an portunity” for the electoral
investigation of its comput- commission to present evi-
erized system that transmit- dence to debunk Odinga’s
ted results. claim of interference.
The court judges said be- “IEBC’s contumacious dis-
cause the electoral com- obedience of this order ...
mission refused to allow in critical areas leaves us
scrutiny of its computer with no option but to ac-
servers it had no option but cept the petitioner’s (Odin-
to agree with the claim by ga’s) claims that the IEBC IT
Kenya’s opposition lead- system was infiltrated and
er Raila Odinga that the the data therein interfered
computerized data of the with or IEBC officials inter-
August presidential elec- Supporters of opposition leader Raila Odinga hold up a pamphlet showing an artificially-created fered with the data or sim-
picture of Odinga, left, knocking out President Uhuru Kenyatta, right, as they demonstrate outside
tions had been interfered the Supreme Court in downtown Nairobi, Kenya Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017. In a detailed ruling is- ply refused to accept that
with. sued Wednesday the court said it nullified President Uhuru Kenyatta’s re-election largely because it had bungled the whole
Outside the court, dem- the electoral commission refused scrutiny of its computerized voting system. transmission system and
onstrators protested for (AP Photo/Ben Curtis) was unable to verify the
and against the Supreme dent Uhuru Kenyatta’s re- larities and illegalities. tion challenging the official data,” said Justice Philom-
Court’s ruling. election earlier this month It made the decision in re- results that Kenyatta won ena Mwilu, who read part
The court annulled Presi- saying there were irregu- sponse to Odinga’s peti- with 54 percent of the vote. of the judgment.q

Congo leader opens peace conference in bloody Kasai region

By CARLEY PETESCH society leaders and former Nations says more than 1.4 The opposition has accused province, that attendees
SALEH MWANAMILONGO militia members at the con- million people have been Kabila of delaying the vote should “remain open to all
Associated Press ference that all who have displaced. to stay in power beyond his constructive suggestions”
DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — contributed to the violence Kabila called on Kasai resi- mandate, which ended in on bringing to justice those
Congo President Joseph in the once-peaceful re- dents to register to vote, December. who have brought shame
Kabila declared Tuesday gion will have to answer for which began last week. The political tensions are on Congo through mas-
that “justice must be done” their crimes. Congo’s electoral com- one factor behind the sacres, decapitations and
as he opened a peace The fighting in the Kasai mission has said the delay fighting in the Kasai region, other serious crimes.
conference in the bloody provinces in Congo’s south in starting registration in a stronghold of opposition The U.N. has estimated 80
Kasai region where thou- began in August 2016 af- Kasai means the country’s to Kabila. Some opposition mass graves exist in the re-
sands of people have died ter Congolese troops killed long-delayed presidential figures from the Kasai re- gion, saying that Congo
in a year of fighting among the leader of the Kamwina election cannot be held gion have boycotted the military “elements” were
government troops and mi- Nsapu militia. this year, in defiance of an conference. responsible for digging at
litias. More than 3,300 people agreement reached by the The president told the open- least half of those. The gov-
Kabila blamed the unrest have died since then, ac- government and opposi- ing of the three-day peace ernment has blamed the
on “terrorist militia” and told cording to the Catholic tion to hold the vote by the conference in Kananga, Kamwina Nsapu militia for
officials, religious and civil church, and the United end of 2017. the capital of Kasai Central the mass graves.q