Last day of campaigning today in the Democratic Republic of Congo. All day continued car noisy rallies and marches by demonstrators praising candidates with songs and dances that last into the night . For the presidential in Bukavu and in most eastern of the country, the favorite remains the incumbent President Joseph Kabila, a strong consensus that these parts came to 90% at the first round (against 45% nationally). The same applies to the provincial assembly candidates belonging to his party, the PPRD (People's Party for Reconstruction and Development) and allied parties. * But the rest of the country, the end result is by no scontato.Dalla morning of Saturday, October 28, is imposed silence election until the opening of the polls on Sunday at 6am. The day was overshadowed by news of new tensions in the city of Gbadolite, in Equateur province, North-west of the country. Here Nzanga Mobutu (son of former President Mobutu Sese Seko) and in turn came fourth (with 4% of the vote) in the first round of presidential elections, was detained for a whole night in the office of Radio Liberty, a supporter of candidate Jean Pierre Bemba, where it should have been interviewed. The presence in Gbadolite (one of the "feudal" in Bemba) of Mobutu, who weeks ago said that Kabila will support the ballot on Sunday, has meant that the radio station was surrounded by militiamen bembisti. It is not clear whether the action has occurred as a result of a provocation by either party, the fact is that in the shooting outside the radio between militiamen unleashed Mobutu and guards were killed 4 people including 3 police officers intervened to resolve the situation, and Bemba's militia. Only this morning at 8.30 local time Mobutu was able to emerge from the radio station: according to MONUC should already have arrived in the capital Kinshasa. In the morning also came news of the killing of three inmates of the prison of Kinshasa and the death of a supporter of Kabila to Bemba stabbed by a Lodja (Kassai in Eastern Europe). Meanwhile, the first group of Italian observers, sent to the region of South Kivu, began their mission. The volunteers visited the voting centers within which are the seats assigned to them, and met the local leaders of the CEI, the Independent Electoral Commission. Some have even been able to participate as a spectator training simulations in counting and counting votes, organized by CEI for those who work the polls. They finally reached their destination also sent the Italian observers in North Kivu, after a night in Goma. Many of their presence in the territory of Masisi, north-west of Goma, since it was requested by the CEI region. This is the territory served by the dissident General Laurent Nkunda, who has refused to join the unified Congolese armed forces (and star of the taking of Bukavu in 2004). In the weeks before the elections here were stolen uniforms of the National Police Congolese (PNC), responsible for supervising the polling stations: there is a concern that someone could wear them to guard polling stations illegally. A team has gone further than any in the far east of the province, Nyamilima, on the border with Uganda. To get there had to be escorted from the Indian contingent of MONUC to continue there through the forest where incidents of looting and banditry.
Bukavu, October 27, 2006
