Call for ban on rubber bullets at protests
A TOP European human rights official yesterday called on France to suspend the use of rubber bullets at protests, such as those held by the Yellow Vests movement.
Council of Europe human rights commissioner Dunja Mijatovic also criticised the arrest of people heading to demonstrations when no offence was identified, and called for restraint in the use of immediate summary proceedings against alleged rioters.
Protesters wearing yellow safety tops have blocked suburban roundabouts and held weekend marches across France since mid-November.
They initially opposed planned fuel tax rises but have since raised broader demands about standards of living and direct democracy, as well as calling for President Emmanuel Macron to resign.
Marches every Saturday in Paris and some other cities have repeatedly degenerated into clashes with police.
Mijatovic strongly condemned “racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic comments and assaults by some demonstrators”, and acknowledged that public order operations were “particularly complex”.
But, she said, the number and severity of the injuries suffered by demonstrators raised questions about the methods used by French authorities.
According to a tally by newspaper Liberation, 143 demonstrators and journalists were seriously injured at Yellow Vests protests up to January 30, including 14 who were blinded in one eye. Rubber bullets were blamed AP for the majority of the serious injuries.
Mijatovic also criticised key provisions of a draft law intended to give authorities more powers to prevent violence at protests.
A provision empowering government officials to ban named individuals from attending protests would be a serious interference with the right of freedom to assembly, she said. | dpa African News Agency (ANA) NIGERIA’S main opposition party has claimed that the results of the weekend’s presidential election were rigged after polling was marred by insecurity and technical setbacks.
“All results currently being announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are incorrect, and thus, unacceptable to our party and people,” said Prince Uche Secondus, chairperson of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
So far, incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari has won in seven of Nigeria’s 36 states, while his main challenger, Atiku Abubakar of the PDP, has won the federal capital, Abuja, and four states.
Secondus said government officials were working with INEC officers to cancel and manipulate election results.
The AU observer mission earlier described Saturday’s elections as “peaceful” despite isolated incidences of violence and malpractice.
“Overall, the process was largely peaceful and orderly and in conformity with Nigeria’s legal framework,” the observer mission said in a statement.
But the body noted isolated reports of violence and destruction of electoral materials in some of the West African nation’s states.
The Situation Room, a coalition of civil society groups that jointly monitored the polls, said at least 39 people were killed across Nigeria on election day.
The group placed the number of election-related deaths since political campaigning began in October at 260 people.
Security officials confirmed that Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram launched two attacks in two north-eastern states in an attempt to disrupt the election – but there were no fatalities.
Both the AU and the Situation Room reported electoral malpractice, including voter intimidation and theft of ballot boxes.
Meanwhile, according to a Reuters tally based on the figures given by the commission, Buhari led Abubakar by 51% to 46%.
Buhari, 76, is a former military ruler seeking a second term on an anti-corruption platform, while Abubakar, 72, a businessman and former vice-president, has pledged to expand the role of the private sector.
The outcome, expected this week, appears to hinge on which man voters trust most to revamp an economy still struggling from a 2016 recession.
|