4月27日VOA聽力：剛果推舉亂糟糟 使人深感絕望
On March 20th the Republic of Congo heldpresidential elections considered flawed;
marred by widespread irregularities, a mediablackout during the polls, an imbalanced andrestrictive media environment, significant disparityin access to state resources, a short time frame forelectoral preparations, and restrictions on freedomsof expression, communication, and association in the pre-election period.
In this political environment President Denis Sassou Nguesso, won a third, five-year term inoffice in an election that officially gave him 60 percent of the vote.
Nguesso, who is 72 years old, decided to run for a third Presidential term in fall of 2015.
Under the country's constitution, Mr. Nguesso was not eligible to run for a third term, and wasalso disqualified due to his age.
In order to remove these obstacles, his government proposed changes to the country'sconstitution that would enable him to run for a third term.
On October 25th of last year, the Congolese government held a deeply flawed referendum toalter the country's constitution, despite massive protests on October 20th and 21st thatturned bloody when security forces opened fire into the crowd of protestors, media outletsreporting dozens killed or injured.
The ruling party then announced that the referendum had passed with nearly 93 percent ofthe vote.
Tensions rose as the opposition disputed the results of the referendum, but another protestplanned by the opposition for October 30th, was cancelled since the ban on protests had notbeen lifted and opposition leaders feared more blood-letting among their supporters.
A similar fate befell a press conference planned for March 25th, during which the oppositionplanned to announce the results of its parallel vote count.
The event was disrupted and then cancelled when police used tear gas to disperse the crowdof opposition supporters and arrested many of them.
Weeks after the government announced President Sassou's victory in the presidentialelection, violence has escalated in the capital.
Heavy shooting and clashes between security forces and the opposition have led hundreds ofresidents of southern Brazzaville to flee their homes on foot toward the calmer north of thecity.
“The United States is profoundly disappointed by the flawed presidential electoral process inthe Republic of Congo,” said State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner in a writtenstatement.
“The United States calls upon the Congolese Government to correct these numerousdeficiencies before scheduling legislative elections in order to bring credibility to futureelectoral processes.
We continue to urge the Congolese Government to respect the people's constitutional rightsof freedom of expression, movement, and association.
We further encourage all parties to engage in constructive, inclusive dialogue.”
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