Latest news with #politicalrepression
BBC News
5 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Burundi elections: Ruling party seeks to tighten grip on power
Voters in Burundi are heading to the polls amid a backdrop of surging inflation, fuel shortages and complaints of political in the National Assembly, Senate and local councils are up for grabs but Évariste Ndayishimiye is safe in his role as president as he is serving a seven-year term that ends in elections will test the popularity of the governing CNDD-FDD party, a former rebel group which has been in power for the past 20 East African nation was already one of the world's poorest countries, but residents there have been put under further pressure by a recent spike in the price of goods such as food. Opposition parties have complained that their supporters have been harassed and intimidated by members of the CNDD-FDD's youth league, the Banzawitonde, leader of the APDR party, said: ''People are so intimidated that they tell you they cannot wear any party colours other than the ruling ones'.But he said they were not giving in and "once in the voting booth, they promise to vote for you".Several political analysts approached by the BBC declined to talk about the elections for fear of repercussions. One expert, who did not want to be named, said: "To avoid unnecessary trouble, you keep quiet."''We pointed out from the start that everything was being tailor-made [to fit the ruling party]," they said, suggesting that a CNDD-FDD win was a done some party officials have even been suggesting that a one-party system may be beneficial for the weekend, secretary-general Reverien Ndikuriyo told supporters that "to reach development, all countries started by having a single party''.Even though this is not historically accurate, the president has also made similar claims."Yes, when it becomes single [the only party], we'll reach development,'' Ndikuriyo he confusingly added: "'Don't let foreigners infiltrate you [and tell you] that the party wants to be single."Chronic shortages of foreign currency, which is needed for imports such as medicine and fuel, have led to a decline in Burundi's economic say that Burundi now runs on less than one month's-worth of foreign currency reserves for imports, while the regional standard is to have at least four of cars stretching from service stations for around 100m (330ft) have become a common sight. They often last for days or weeks as motorists wait for fuel, which is being rationed by the to the World Bank, the annual domestic income of an average Burundian in 2023 was $193 (£142), the lowest within the East African Community trade Ndikumana, an economist and anti-corruption activist, believes Burundi's situation will not improve any time soon. ''Good governance has to be established. We're not there yet,'' he told the the governing party and its leader hold an opposing Ndayishimiye has said residents of Bujumbura, Burundi's largest city, "looked bad in 2005" but now "had money to buy shoes, new clothes and to build a house''.And the CNDD-FDD often responds to criticism by reminding Burundians that the party fought for the Hutu ethnic group - who make up the majority of the population - to access power, after four decades of what they considered as oppression by the minority Tutsis. More BBC stories on Burundi: Rwanda planning to attack Burundi, president tells BBC'Mpox made my throat so painful I couldn't sleep'Burundi leader to get $530,000 and luxury villa Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
Asharq Al-Awsat
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Over 8 Million Syrians Were Wanted by Assad Intelligence, Security Services, Say Authorities
Syria's interior ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba said Saturday that around a third of the population had been wanted by the intelligence and security services of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, who was ousted in December. Baba told a press conference in Damascus that "the number of people wanted by the former regime for political reasons exceeds eight million". "We are talking about around a third of the Syrian people who had records and were wanted by the repressive intelligence and security agencies of the former regime," he said, adding that the ministry had been working to address the issue. After Syria's civil war broke out with Assad's brutal repression of peaceful anti-government protests, millions of Syrians found themselves caught in the dragnet of the feared security services, facing prosecution, abuse and rights violations. Many faced accusations of taking part in or promoting demonstrations, "undermining the prestige of the state", communicating with foreign parties or financing and supporting "terrorism". Assad used the term "terrorism" to describe all rebels and groups opposing his rule. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians were thrown into prison, where many faced torture and tens of thousands are still missing. Many people only found out they were wanted when they were detained at security checkpoints or as they sought to leave the country, because the charges were often issued secretly. Opposition faction toppled Assad in December after five decades of his family's iron-fisted rule and nearly 14 years of brutal war that killed more than half a million people and displaced millions more. Baba's remarks came on the sidelines of an announcement of a restructuring of the interior ministry that includes creating a number of new departments. They include a complaints department and a border security body in charge of Syria's land and sea frontiers that is tasked with "combating illegal activities, particularly drug and human smuggling networks". A tourism police department will be tasked with securing tourist sites and visitors in the war-torn country, home to important archaeological and UNESCO World Heritage sites including the ancient city of Palmyra. Since taking power, the new administration has been seeking to revitalize crumbling public administration and facilities, and has also announced the formation of commissions for missing persons and transitional justice. Rights groups, activists and the international community have repeatedly emphasized the importance of transitional justice in the war-ravaged country.
CTV News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Russia convicts a prominent election monitoring activist and sentences him to 5 years in prison
Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia's leading independent election monitoring group Golos who faces up to six years in prison, looks at the media standing in a cage in a courtroom prior to a hearing in Basmanny district court in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) A court in Moscow on Wednesday convicted one of the leaders of a prominent independent election monitoring group on charges of organizing the work of an 'undesirable' organization and sentenced him to five years in prison. Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia's leading election watchdog Golos, has rejected the charges as politically motivated. The case against him is part of the monthslong crackdown on Kremlin critics and rights activists that the government ratcheted up after invading Ukraine in 2022. After a judge of the Basmanny District Court delivered the verdict, Melkonyants, 44, told several dozen supporters and journalists from the glass defendant's cage: 'Don't worry, I'm not despairing. You shouldn't despair either!' Golos has monitored for and exposed violations in every major election in Russia since it was founded in 2000. Over the years, it has faced mounting pressure from the authorities. In 2013, the group was designated as a 'foreign agent' — a label that implies additional government scrutiny and carries strong pejorative connotations. Three years later, it was liquidated as a non-governmental organization by Russia's Justice Ministry. Golos has continued to operate without registering as an NGO, exposing violations in various elections, and in 2021 it was added to a new registry of 'foreign agents,' created by the Justice Ministry for groups that are not registered as a legal entity in Russia. It has not been designated as 'undesirable' — a label that under a 2015 law makes involvement with such organizations a criminal offense. But when it was an NGO, it was a member of the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations, a group that was declared 'undesirable' in Russia in 2021, and the charges against Melkonyants stemmed from that. The defense argued that when ENEMO was outlawed in Russia, Golos wasn't a member, and Melkonyants had nothing to do with it. Melkonyants, a renowned election expert and lawyer by training, was arrested in August 2023 and has been in custody ever since. Ella Pamfilova, chair of Russia's Central Election Commission, the country's main election authority, spoke out in his support at the time, telling Russian business daily Vedomosti about the case: 'I would really like to hope that they will handle this objectively. Because his criticism, often professional, helped us a lot sometimes.' Independent journalists, critics, activists and opposition figures in Russia have come under increasing pressure from the government in recent years that intensified significantly amid the war in Ukraine. Multiple independent news outlets and rights groups have been shut down, labeled as 'foreign agents' or outlawed as 'undesirable.' Hundreds of activists and critics of the Kremlin have faced criminal charges. Melkonyants' defense team said after the verdict that they will appeal. Lawyer Mikhail Biryukov told reporters that 'there is no evidence' in the case that he and others on the defense team consider 'politically motivated, pretentious.' 'We will fight for Grigory's freedom, because an illegal, unjust verdict should not exist. It should not stand (in the appeal proceedings). We all hope that the law will prevail,' Biryukov said. Memorial, Russia's prominent human rights group that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022, has designated Melkonyants as a political prisoner. Dasha Litvinova, The Associated Press
New York Times
14-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Russia Sentences Prominent Election Expert to 5 Years in Prison
The head of Russia's only independent election watchdog was sentenced on Wednesday to five years in prison after being convicted of working with an 'undesirable' organization, according to Russian news agencies and his attorney. Grigory Melkonyants, a co-founder of the Russian election monitoring group Golos, was jailed in 2023 after President Vladimir V. Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine and led a broad crackdown at home. Charged with 'organizing the activities of an undesirable organization,' Mr. Melkonyants, 44, pleaded not guilty when his trial opened last September. On Wednesday, he was convicted in a Moscow court and sentenced to five years in a prison colony, his lawyer, Mikhail Biryukov, told The New York Times. Golos, which was founded in 2000 and documented widespread election fraud, was labeled a 'foreign agent' by the Russian authorities in 2013. But the charges against Mr. Melkonyants relate to the group's past affiliation with the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations, which the Russian authorities declared 'undesirable' in 2021 — making any association with it a potential crime. Golos has said it terminated its participation with the association following the decision. The 'undesirable' label has been used to outlaw unwanted groups, including NGOs and media organizations, and crack down on dissent. But Mr. Melkonyants was apolitical, Roman Udot, a longtime colleague who lives in exile, said. He noted that while countless civil activists fled Russia following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Melkonyants insisted on staying put and focusing on his expertise, without taking sides. Golos — which means 'vote' in Russian — documented extensive voting irregularities during the 2011 parliamentary elections. Anger about those violations sparked the biggest protests to date against Mr. Putin's rule and spurred a broader opposition movement led by the late Aleksei A. Navalny. After mounting pressure from the Russian authorities, Golos was designated a foreign agent in 2013. But it was only after the war in Ukraine started that Russia's security services cracked down harder on the group, Mr. Udot said. Following his arrest, Mr. Melkonyants was listed as a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, which said the election expert was being 'persecuted solely for his civil activism.'
