Cotonou (AFP) - Protesters in Benin were locked in a tense
standoff with police and soldiers Thursday after violence broke out following
controversial parliamentary polls held without a single opposition candidate.
Hours after initial results showed a record low turnout in
Sunday's election, soldiers and large numbers of police deployed on Wednesday
across the economic capital Contonou.
Supporters of former president Boni Yayi, who led calls for
a boycott of the ballot, took to the streets.
They erected makeshift barriers of burning tyres, and
chanting slogans against President Patrice Talon.
Protestors have torched businesses, hurled stones, and
smashed the windows of government buildings. Police fired tear gas to break up
crowds.
They continued their protests overnight, and remained on the
streets Thursday.
"Nobody has slept," said one demonstrator on
Thursday morning, who gave his name as Justin B.
"Around 10 pm, they cut the light and fired live
ammunition," he claimed, pointing to two empty bullet casings and
bloodstains on the floor. "Two people were seriously injured, a man and a
woman."
In the Cadjehoun district of Cotonou, where Yayi Boni's
house is, a resident also reported to have heard shots fired.
"We do not know at all what will happen now, but we
feel that it is bad," said one woman, but added that it still felt safe
enough for children to go to school on Thursday.
The small West African state was held up as a model for
democracy, but the situation has raised warnings from civil society and rights
groups inside and outside Benin.
Tough new eligibility criteria effectively barred opposition
parties from fielding any candidates in last Sunday's parliamentary elections.
On the day itself, more than three-quarters of the country's
five million registered voters stayed at home.
Turnout has never dropped below 50 percent since the
country's transition to democracy in 1990.
0 Comments