Chad votes in first parliamentary elections in more than a decade: What you need to know | Election news

Chadians are voting in parliamentary, regional and municipal elections for the first time in more than a decade, continuing the former military-civilian government’s attempt to put the Central African country on a democratic path. But the members of the opposition parties are skeptical about it.

Ndjamena officials say Sunday’s vote will formally end a three-year “period of transition” in 2021 following the death of longtime leader Idris Debi Itno and his son’s forced seizure of power. Mahamat Idris DebyHe was confirmed as the country’s president after the May elections.

However, many opposition parties are boycotting the elections, calling them a “masquerade” and accusing the Patriotic Liberation Movement (MPH) government of trying to legitimize what they call a political dynasty.

Chad, one of the poorest countries in Africa, is at the top of this list coup states Holding elections in the Sahel as promised, even if the polls were seriously delayed. The country is no stranger to coups or repressive governments and has been ruled by the Deby family since 1991.

Sunday’s vote comes at a time of many security challenges: war on Sudan’s eastern border; Boko Haram attacks security posts around Lake Chad; and N’Djamena He recently broke a military contract with its former colonial master and powerful ally France.

Rights groups say that without the full participation of the opposition, the election will not be fair.

“Without inclusiveness, it will be difficult to hold a credible election,” Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International’s country director for neighboring Nigeria, told Al Jazeera. “The boycott of the election by some shows that the process and system must be reviewed to ensure a level playing field to accommodate all Chadians.”

Here’s what you need to know about the parliamentary elections and why the country’s new steps towards democracy are controversial:

How will voters choose?

• 8.3 million registered voters of the country’s 18 million population will vote for lawmakers in the 188-seat parliament. Parties need 95 seats for a majority.
• More than 100 political parties nominated about 1100 candidates in the parliamentary elections. The winners are selected by first-past-the-post or majority vote method, depending on the number of constituencies.
• Voters will also elect regional and local governments across 22 regions and the capital, N’Djamena.
• The Transformers Party, as well as dozens of other opposition parties, are boycotting the elections on the grounds that the voting will not be free or fair.

Why haven’t parliamentary elections been held in more than ten years?

Parliamentary elections were last held in 2011. Although the term of office of the legislators was supposed to end in 2015, the government postponed the elections indefinitely, claiming that there were no funds to organize the elections.

Although the landlocked country is an oil producer, it ranks fourth from the bottom on the United Nations’ Human Development Index due to long years of economic activity and harsh climatic conditions.

Despite calls from opposition members for early elections, former President Deby continued to postpone them. In 2019, the newly established National Independent Electoral Commission (CENI) finally promised to hold elections in 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted these plans.

After his father’s death at the hands of rebels in May 2021, 40-year-old General Mahamat Idriss Deby took power despite vociferous calls for elections from opposition parties. The military dissolved parliament and established a one-year Transitional Military Council headed by Déby. In October 2022, the leader disappointed many Chadians when he extended the transition period until 2024. Thousands of people, especially young people, took to the streets in protest, but security forces opened fire on them, killing more than 100 people.

Ugur Masra, the young leader of the opposition Transformers Party, was at the forefront of the protests. Masra fled to the United States after the murders.

Have there been other elections?

Yes, the authorities held a successful referendum in December 2023 in favor of a new constitution and de facto new elections.

In May of this year, Debi won disputed presidential electionsamid allegations that his party rigged the vote with the help of the National Electoral Management Agency (ANGE).

Critics also accused Deby of killing opposition candidates before the election. Chadian security forces killed Yaya Dillon, Debi’s cousin and a leading opposition member of the Socialist Party Without Borders (PSF), in February. He was seen as the president’s biggest challenger at the time.

Officials have alleged that Dillon led the deadly attack on the headquarters of the country’s intelligence agency on February 28, but Dillo has denied the allegations. Dillo was killed in a shootout the next day along with several other PSF members. Many members are still being held at the notorious Koro Toro high-security prison, according to Amnesty International. In 2022, organizations such as Human Rights Watch documented how prison officials tortured and killed protesters held at the facility.

Debi won 61.3 percent of the vote, angering opposition groups who claimed the election was rigged. International rights groups such as the International Federation of Human Rights said the presidential elections were “neither credible, nor free, nor democratic.”

The president was far ahead of his biggest rival, the candidate of the Transformers Party, Masra, who came in second with 18.5 percent of the vote. Masra returned to the country in January this year after a peace deal and was appointed prime minister in what many saw as an attempt by Debi to win over members of the opposition. But when the two faced each other in the elections, the tension was renewed. Masra resigned as prime minister and has since returned to lead the opposition.

Which parties participate in this election?

Patriotic Liberation Movement (MPS): The ruling party is MPS, led by former prime minister Harun Kabadi, an agricultural expert and now head of the Transitional Council. It was founded by former president Debbie Itno and current president Deny is “president emeritus”. MPS has been controlling the parliament since 1996. Before the Transitional Council was established in 2021, the party was in a coalition government with allies Rally for Democracy and Progress (RDP) and National Rally for Democracy and Progress (RNDP) and controlled 134 parliaments. they will sit.

National Union for Democracy and Renewal (UNDR): Led by politician Saleh Kebzabo, it was one of the main opposition coalitions against former president Debi Itno’s rule. The current president appointed Kebzabo as the prime minister in 2022-2024. The party controlled 10 seats until 2021.

National Rally of Chad Democrats (RNDT): Once allied with the MPS in the ruling coalition, the RNDT is largely seen as a “semi-opposition” group. It is headed by former Prime Minister Albert Pahimi Padacke (2021-2022). Padacke ran in May’s presidential election and won 16.9 percent of the vote. The RNDT controlled eight seats in parliament until 2021.

Why are some opposition parties boycotting parliamentary elections?

Some opposition parties, including Masra’s Transformers, the Group for Cooperation of Political Actors (GCAP) and more than 10 other parties, abstained in protest and distributed flyers to encourage people not to vote.

The parties accuse Deby’s government of repression and autocracy and say that opposition members have already “lost in advance”.

Masra, who came second in the presidential elections, told the AFP news agency that “participating in legislative elections under the current conditions is participating in legislative apartheid.”

Some parties, such as the Chadian Democratic Party, claimed that they were preventing MPS members from campaigning by creating barriers in their strongholds.

The authorities denied the allegations. Infrastructure Minister Aziz Mahamat Saleh told reporters that the elections will allow the ruling MPS and President Deby to obtain the majority of votes needed “to make their political program a reality.”

Why are Chadian journalists protesting?

Meanwhile, online journalists this week criticized the ban on December 4, which prevents online newspapers from publishing audiovisual content related to the elections and in general. Authorities have also suspended interactive broadcasts of phone calls.

The country’s High Media and Audiovisual Authority (HAMA), which issued the restrictions, claims that online publications violate content laws by reposting videos without the permission of content producers. In the past, HAMA has accused online journalists of publishing “unverified” information about President Deby.

On December 20, the Supreme Court ordered the immediate removal of the content ban. However, HAMA has not implemented the sentence yet. Speaking on state television on Tuesday, HAMA president Abderrahmane Barka said the order was in line with Chadian laws on sharing content, but did not say whether the agency would respect the ruling.

About 40 media publications have gone on strike. On Tuesday, many reporters took to the streets in the city of Ndjamena to protest the decision, accusing the HAMA and MPS government of trying to silence online media ahead of the elections. According to them, the restrictions also prevent them from publishing locally created audiovisual content.

Human rights activists criticized the ban. “As a regulatory body, HAMA’s mission is to regulate the media space, not preemptively restrict it,” said Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Sub-Saharan Africa Director Sadibou Marong.

“The difference is small, but important to ensure press freedom in Chad. If the distribution of content is banned without the consent of its producer, RSF asks HAMA to reverse its decision by not banning online media from broadcasting and producing their own audiovisual content.

What’s next?

Analysts say the MPS is poised to win a majority in parliament, essentially cementing the party’s decades-long rule and also strengthening the Déby family’s grip on power.

At large rallies in N’Djamena over the weekend, MPS politicians handed out hats, key chains and other souvenirs painted in the party’s blue and yellow colors to thousands of supporters.

However, rights groups are urging authorities to ensure inclusive voting. Amnesty International’s Sanusi said, “The Chadian authorities have a duty not only to ensure that elections are free and fair, but also to ensure that they are inclusive.”

Opposition boycotters have meanwhile vowed to independently monitor the vote and submit evidence of violations to the Tanzania-based African Court of Justice, which has jurisdiction over African Union member states, so that the court can annul the vote.