Sunday May 11, 2014
Kaieteur News
Page 69
Ukraine warns of ‘abyss’ as rebel South Africa’s Zuma dedicates east approaches self-rule vote election win to Nelson Mandela
Election commission worker Vera Pozhidaeva demonstrates the readiness of a polling station for Sunday’s referendum in the eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk yesterday. REUTERS/Valentin Ogirenko M A R I U P O L / SLAVIANSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Ukrainian leader Oleksander Turchinov warned pro-Russian eastern regions they would be stepping into the abyss if they voted for self-rule today in a referendum that has raised Western fears of a slide to full civil war. Barricades of tires and scrap metal blocked streets in the port city of Mariupol and in Slaviansk, centers of an uprising that has unleashed the worst crisis between the West and Russia since the Cold War. There was a clash between army and rebels near Slaviansk late on Saturday, but fighting had largely abated. For a vote on which so much hangs, the referendum in the regions of Luhansk and Donetsk, which has declared itself a “ P e o p l e ’s Republic”, seems a decidedly ad hoc affair. Ballot papers have
been printed with no security provision and the meaning of the question - asking voters if they support state ‘self-rule’ for the People’s Republic of Donetsk - is, perhaps deliberately, unclear. Some see in it endorsement of autonomy within Ukraine, some a move to independence and others a nod to absorption by Russia in the wake of Crimea, which Moscow annexed in March. Annexation is favored by the more prominent rebels, but the ambiguity may reflect their fears a full break would not garner enough support. The eastern uprising followed the toppling in February of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich, whose pursuit of ties with Moscow stirred mass protests by pro-Western activists in Kiev. Rebels seized government and police buildings in the east with very little resistance from security forces Kiev says
had been undermined by years of neglect and corruption under successive leaders. But in recent days, Ukrainian forces have been striking back with shows of force especially in Mariupol, an important industrial and shipping centre. The interior ministry said 20 rebels were killed in fighting on Friday, while hospitals put the number of dead at seven. Russia denies Western and Ukrainian accusations it has fostered the rebellion. It portrays the Kiev government as hostage to violent antiRussian nationalists, intent on rooting out the culture and language of the Russianspeaking east. Acting president Turchinov is attempting to bring eastern political forces into a round table to discuss federal devolution, but says he will not deal with rebel leaders with blood on their hands.
Johannesburg (AFP) South African President Jacob Zuma yesterday dedicated his ANC’s landslide victory in this week’s elections to Nelson Mandela, 20 years to the day of the late liberation leader’s inauguration. “We dedicate our victory to Madiba’s memory, and pledge to continue taking forward his legacy and that of his peers and forebears,” Zuma said, using Mandela’s clan name The party’s 62.15 percent share of the vote meant an “overwhelming mandate” for a fifth term in government since the end of whiteminority rule, said Zuma, speaking publicly for the first time on the vote results. Nostalgia for the father of the nation, who died last December, helped support for the ruling party in Wednesday’s polls despite a series of corruption scandals, galloping unemployment and economic doldrums. Marking two decades to the day Mandela became South Africa’s first black president, Zuma said: “The victory also reaffirms that the ANC remains the only true hope for the majority of our people, particularly the poor and the working class.” The results assured the ruling party 249 seats in the 400-member parliament, while main opposition the centrist Democratic Alliance’s (DA) 22.23 percent gave it 89. New radical left-wing party the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) came third with 6.35 percent, propelling its inflammatory leader Julius Malema into parliament. Anti-apartheid veteran
Mamphela Ramphele, a former World Bank managing director, garnered two seats for her Agang party after a disappointing performance. Over 73 percent of the 25.4 million registered voters cast their ballot. A few thousand ANC supporters gathered in a square next to the party headquarters in Johannesburg on Saturday night for a victory party. Zuma danced on stage with party leaders while local artists performed amid flags and branding sporting the ANC’s green, black and gold. Speaking at the main election tallying centre in Pretoria before dashing to the victory rally, Zuma set the tone for the incoming administration. He pledged to continue programmes to improve the delivery of basic services to millions of South Africans and roll out massive new infrastructure projects. Zuma, 72, is assured of a second five-year term despite $23 million in state-paid upgrades to his private home and personal friends flying wedding guests into the
country via a military air force base. But the ANC’s support fell slightly from the 65.9 percent it won in 2009 elections, as opposed to the DA’s improvement on its previous tally of 16.66 percent. The DA also strengthened its position in the Western Cape province, the only governed by an opposition party. The ANC’s share of the vote also plunged in economic heartland, Gauteng province, from 64 percent to 54 percent, where personal scandals surrounding the president have been a liability for the party. Results trickled in last for Gauteng, which also has the highest number of voters, raising allegations of voterigging from the EFF and historical ANC rival the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP). The military deployed overnight Friday in Johannesburg’s Alexandra township and police arrested 59 people for public violence after residents burnt tyres and barricaded streets over alleged voter fraud. Police reported no casualties.