Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bissau (Agenzia Fides) – On Sunday, July 26, the second round of presidential elections in Guinea Bissau will take place. In the first round, which was held June 28 (see Fides 26/6/2009), Malam Bacai Sanha, candidate of the African Independence Party of Guinea and Capo Verde (PAIGC), obtained 39.59% versus 29.42% of the vote won by the leader of the Party for Social Renewal (PRS), Kumba Yala.
Sanha and Kumba Yala were already rivals on the ballot in previous elections. In fact, Sanha, ad interim President from 1999 to 2000, and Yala, ran against one another in the second round of the elections in 2000. The vote on Sunday, therefore, will be similar to that of 2000, which were won by Kumba Yala, with 72% of the votes. Kumba Yala, however, did not complete his mandate, as he was removed from power in a military goups in 2003.
The people hope that with these elections, stability will improve in the country, as it has been greatly weakened by political violence and, in recent years, by South American cocaine trafficking making its way to European markets. In the last 15 years, none of the three Presidents elected have finished their five-year term, either because the military takes over (as in the case of Vieira in 1998 and Yala in 2003), or because they are killed by soldiers (Vieira on March 1 of this year). The second round of the electoral campaign has been marked by verbal violence and this has led to fears over possible disorder. In order to guarantee security and the peace during the elections, 4,900 men (police and military) will be deployed. In the first round, only 3,600 men were deployed to take care of security.
The United States, Canada, Japan, and Great Britain have launched an appeal in which they ask that the vote take place “with calm and transparency.” The two election rounds have been entirely financed by the international community, costing a total of 5.1 million Euros. Nearly 150 international observers will be working to guarantee the legality of the vote.
Voting was originally scheduled to take place on August 2, however it was pushed up to July 26 in order to allow farmers to work during the harvest, which begins in August. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 24/7/2009)
