Sudanese are registering in substantial numbers for their first multi-party elections in 24 years, although opposition is citing irregularities and those displaced from Darfur are refusing to take part unless peace is established, reports Le Potentiel of Kinshasa.
Registration began in November, without much enthusiasm in Khartoum and other regions. Surprisingly, 11 million voters have signed up to the roll and the authorities have extended the registration period to December 7.
"This is a very high and unexpected result," a source who preferred to remain anonymous said. "There has been a high turnout from most regions."
A South Sudanese electoral commission spokesman, Mac Maika, told Agence France-Presse: "There has been a great shift from what we experienced at the beginning." But he said ethnic tensions and the accessibility of remove villages had been a problem in the south.
The Carter Center of Altanta in the United States, an independent electoral monitoring organisation, expressed concern that inequalities still exist as a result of lack of registration infrastucture in some area.
Translated and adapted from the original French by Michael Tantoh.
