cards

MOGADISHU, Somalia — As the sun rises over Mogadishu's bustling streets, conversations in cafes and markets gravitate towards a shiny new piece of plastic: the national ID card. Its introduction is causing a stir, amplifying fears that it might be wielded as a tool to tilt the scales in the upcoming Villa Somalia-driven "one person, one vote" elections—a process already under scrutiny. Imagine a national ID card that's designed to simplify voter verification, make elections fairer. Sounds ideal, right? Yet,…

Ivory Coast is voting this Saturday, October 31, for the first round of the presidential election. Nearly 7.5 million Ivorian citizens are urged to have their vote put on the ballot. They had until last Sunday to withdraw their voting cards. But less than half of the registered voters turned out to collect it. A weak mobilization that could be explained by the call for civil disobedience and an active…

Today is the end of the campaign to withdraw ballot papers, while the first round of the presidential election is scheduled for less than a week. Nearly 7.5 million citizens are registered on the electoral rolls. A record number. But since the call for civil disobedience and an active boycott launched by the opposition and the violence that killed 16 people in Dabou in particular, the withdrawal of…