Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Polls/Elections in the DRC: A Great Excuse for a Riot!

I spent a summer and a couple winter vacations living in the DRC. Well, for the first winter it was still Zaire, but that is sort of irrelevant. Since independence in 1960, there hasn't been a single free and fair election in the country. I am not an expert on the DRC or the Southern African Development Community or even sub-Saharan African history, but I can look like one with enough links. Germany is supporting the elections as part of a UN presence. It seems fairly routine that elections or talk of elections cause riots by those who support a group that appears or feels slighted and these polls are no exception. Considering the way a largely uneducated society can be manipulated by a few charismatic individuals, I hope this does not set the tone for the rest of the year and the results of the elections.

5 comments:

Kevin Wolf said...

You're actually talking about the US of A, aren't you?

Anonymous said...

dont be silly kevin. the US would never let even their own citizens, never mind a UN watchdog oversee their polls. it makes getting away with vote-stealing a lot harder. particularly cause all of youse is so fat1!

pobmhj: the new name of DRC after the new revolution(too easy?)

Anonymous said...

Yeah, the US would never let that happen, just ask former President Al Gore.

Chuckles said...

Bitterness tastes so good when it is justified.

Lindsey said...

I'm so not a political person Chuckles. *sigh*

You've got to throw in some posts I can relate to. :o(