Dry times for a quick election

The government faces elections against a divided opposition: its biggest enemies are the weather and Eritrean President Issayas Afewerki

The political calendar will be dominated by national elections on 23 May. The government wants to avoid a repeat of the violence that followed the 2005 elections, when 200 people were killed in clashes between police and demonstrators (AC Vol 46 No 23). Above all, it wants to win convincingly and face down critics in the diaspora and among foreign activists. Riot police have been trained and a recently formulated Code of Conduct, approved by Parliament, has been signed by 65 parties, though not yet by the largest opposition group, the Forum for Democratic Dialogue in Ethiopia (Medrek).

Article Tags:
Meles Zenawi, Addisu Legesse, Tefera Walwa, Seyoum Mesfin, Bereket Simon, The people's priorities, Somalia, Mengistu Haile Mariam, Haile Selassie, Britain, Africa Confidential, Belg, Meher, Kiremt

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