SA observers leave for DRC
2006-10-21 13:29
Johannesburg - A 108-member South African Observer Mission (SAOM) left for the Democratic Republic of Congo on Saturday to observe the second round of presidential and provincial elections, taking place on October 29.
"The members will be deployed to all 11 provinces and will be monitoring all aspects of the election," said SAOM spokesperson Vincent Hlongwane.
The second round is scheduled for October 29 after none of the 33 presidential candidates received a majority vote in the first round in July.
The presidential runners are incumbent President Joseph Kabila and vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba.
Despite outbreaks of violence in Kinshasa after the first round, Hlongwane was confident the second round would be quiet.
"We cannot rule out isolated incidences of violence, but the sense we are getting is an outlying atmosphere of calmness," he said.
The observers will be stationed in the DRC until November 2, by which time most polling stations would have submitted their ballots.
Hlongwane said the 108-members of SAOM were a cross-section of the population and included MPs; representatives of civil, youth and women's organisations; and businesspeople with interests in the DRC.
- SAPA