<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/congo-heads-to-the-polls-for-tense-long-delayed-presidential-vote-187294">Voters in the Democratic Republic of Congo </a>went to the polls on Sunday in elections that will shape the future of their vast, troubled country, amid fears that violence could overshadow the ballot.

Millions of electors are choosing a successor to President Joseph Kabila, who is stepping down two years after his term limit expired — a delay that sparked bloody clashes and revived traumatic memories of past turmoil.

The vote gives DR Congo the chance of its first peaceful transfer of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960.

But analysts say the threat of violence is great, given the many organisational problems and wide-ranging suspicion of Kabila.

The election's credibility has already been strained by repeated delays, the risk of hitches on polling day and accusations that electronic voting machines will produce a rigged result.

On the eve of the vote, talks between key candidates to avert post-election violence broke down.

Opposition frontrunners Martin Fayulu and Felix Tshisekedi refused Saturday to sign a proposed peace pledge, saying election officials had failed to make suggested changes to the text.

The announcement came after the pair had met with the&nbsp; 
Independent National Election Commission (CENI) as well as Kabila's preferred successor, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary.

The UN, the United States and Europe have loudly appealed for the elections to be free, fair and peaceful — a call echoed on Wednesday by the presidents of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and the neighbouring Republic of Congo.

Polling stations opened in the east of the country a little after their scheduled time of 0400 GMT and an hour later in Kinshasa and the west.

Kabila voted in the capital along with his family, just minutes before Shadary also cast his ballot in the same polling station.

"I feel liberated, freed," said Victor Balibwa, a 53-year-old civil servant and one of the first voters to cast his ballot in Lubumbashi, the country's mining capital in the southeast.

"I'm excited to vote, to be able to choose at last. It's my first election," an 18-year-old student named Rachel told AFP in the eastern city of Goma, an opposition stronghold.

Some polling stations opened late in Goma and elsewhere.

In one, electoral officials were still adjusting voting machines and in another, a technician needed to restart a machine that had broken down, an AFP reporter saw.

The last polls are due to close at 1600 GMT. Provisional results are due on January 6.

Twenty-one candidates are contending the presidential election, which is taking place simultaneously with ballots for the national legislature and municipal bodies.

The frontrunners include Kabila's champion Shadary, a hardline former interior minister facing EU sanctions for a crackdown on protesters.

His biggest rivals are Fayulu, until recently a little-known legislator and former oil executive, and Tshisekedi, head of a veteran opposition party, the UDPS.

If the elections are "free and fair," an opposition candidate will almost certainly win, according to Jason Stearns of the Congo Research Group, based at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University.

Opinion polls indicate Fayulu is a clear favourite, garnering around 44 per cent of voting intentions, followed by 24 per cent for Tshisekedi and 18 per cent for Shadary, he said.

However, "the potential for violence is extremely high," Stearns warned.

Between 43 and 63 per cent of respondents said they would not accept the results if Shadary is declared the winner, he said.

And between 43 per cent and 53 per cent said they did not trust DRC's courts to settle any election dispute fairly. However, Kabila said he was confident "everything will go well on Sunday".

"I want to reassure our people that measures have been taken with the government to guarantee the safety of all sides, candidates, voters and observers alike," he said in his end-of-year address broadcast Saturday.

Eighty times the size of its former colonial master Belgium, the DRC covers 2.3 million square kilometres in the middle of Africa, behind only Algeria in the area on the continent.

Gold, uranium, copper, cobalt and other riches are extracted from its soil, but little of that wealth comes down to the poor.

In the last 22 years, the country has twice been a battleground for wars drawing in armies from around central and southern Africa.

The legacy of that era endures today in the DRC's eastern border region, where ruthless militias have carried out hundreds of killings.

Insecurity and an ongoing Ebola epidemic in part of North Kivu province, and communal violence in Yumbi, in the southwest of the country, prompted the authorities to postpone the elections there until March.

Kabila said the vote would take place "as soon as the situation allows it".

Around 1.25 million people, out of a national electoral roll of 40 million, are affected.

No explanation has been offered as to whether or how the delayed vote will affect the official outcome, and legal experts say the postponement is unconstitutional.&nbsp;

Voters in the Democratic Republic of Congo went to the polls on Sunday in elections that will shape the future of their vast, troubled country, amid fears that violence could overshadow the ballot.

Voters in the Democratic Republic of Congo went to the polls on Sunday in elections that will shape the future of their vast, troubled country, amid fears that violence could overshadow the ballot. Millions of electors are choosing a successor to President Joseph Kabila, who is stepping down two years after his term limit expired — a delay that sparked bloody clashes and revived traumatic memories of past turmoil. The vote gives DR Congo the chance of its first peaceful transfer of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960. But analysts say the threat of violence is great, given the many organisational problems and wide-ranging suspicion of Kabila. The election's credibility has already been strained by repeated delays, the risk of hitches on polling day and accusations that electronic voting machines will produce a rigged result. On the eve of the vote, talks between key candidates to avert post-election violence broke down. Opposition frontrunners Martin Fayulu and Felix Tshisekedi refused Saturday to sign a proposed peace pledge, saying election officials had failed to make suggested changes to the text. The announcement came after the pair had met with the Independent National Election Commission (CENI) as well as Kabila's preferred successor, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary. The UN, the United States and Europe have loudly appealed for the elections to be free, fair and peaceful — a call echoed on Wednesday by the presidents of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia and the neighbouring Republic of Congo. Polling stations opened in the east of the country a little after their scheduled time of 0400 GMT and an hour later in Kinshasa and the west. Kabila voted in the capital along with his family, just minutes before Shadary also cast his ballot in the same polling station. "I feel liberated, freed," said Victor Balibwa, a 53-year-old civil servant and one of the first voters to cast his ballot in Lubumbashi, the country's mining capital in the southeast. "I'm excited to vote, to be able to choose at last. It's my first election," an 18-year-old student named Rachel told AFP in the eastern city of Goma, an opposition stronghold. Some polling stations opened late in Goma and elsewhere. In one, electoral officials were still adjusting voting machines and in another, a technician needed to restart a machine that had broken down, an AFP reporter saw. The last polls are due to close at 1600 GMT. Provisional results are due on January 6. Twenty-one candidates are contending the presidential election, which is taking place simultaneously with ballots for the national legislature and municipal bodies. The frontrunners include Kabila's champion Shadary, a hardline former interior minister facing EU sanctions for a crackdown on protesters. His biggest rivals are Fayulu, until recently a little-known legislator and former oil executive, and Tshisekedi, head of a veteran opposition party, the UDPS. If the elections are "free and fair," an opposition candidate will almost certainly win, according to Jason Stearns of the Congo Research Group, based at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University. Opinion polls indicate Fayulu is a clear favourite, garnering around 44 per cent of voting intentions, followed by 24 per cent for Tshisekedi and 18 per cent for Shadary, he said. However, "the potential for violence is extremely high," Stearns warned. Between 43 and 63 per cent of respondents said they would not accept the results if Shadary is declared the winner, he said. And between 43 per cent and 53 per cent said they did not trust DRC's courts to settle any election dispute fairly. However, Kabila said he was confident "everything will go well on Sunday". "I want to reassure our people that measures have been taken with the government to guarantee the safety of all sides, candidates, voters and observers alike," he said in his end-of-year address broadcast Saturday. Eighty times the size of its former colonial master Belgium, the DRC covers 2.3 million square kilometres in the middle of Africa, behind only Algeria in the area on the continent. Gold, uranium, copper, cobalt and other riches are extracted from its soil, but little of that wealth comes down to the poor. In the last 22 years, the country has twice been a battleground for wars drawing in armies from around central and southern Africa. The legacy of that era endures today in the DRC's eastern border region, where ruthless militias have carried out hundreds of killings. Insecurity and an ongoing Ebola epidemic in part of North Kivu province, and communal violence in Yumbi, in the southwest of the country, prompted the authorities to postpone the elections there until March. Kabila said the vote would take place "as soon as the situation allows it". Around 1.25 million people, out of a national electoral roll of 40 million, are affected. No explanation has been offered as to whether or how the delayed vote will affect the official outcome, and legal experts say the postponement is unconstitutional.

DR Congo goes to polls after troubled odyssey

Unidentified assailants stabbed 12 patients in their hospital beds in the restive DR Congo city of Goma, with fears it was the work of Ugandan Islamist rebels, officials said on Tuesday.

Three of the victims were seriously hurt in the knife rampage overnight Sunday-Monday in two health centres in the Goma district of Mbosho, provincial health minister Martial Kambumbu said.&nbsp;

&quot;It is the first time we have seen patients being stabbed in health facilities in Goma,&quot; said Etienne Kambale, civil society rapporteur in North Kivu province, of which Goma is the capital.

&quot;It is surprising. We are wondering if it was the ADF who have turned up in Goma, because this is the way they killed people in Beni.&quot;

Government forces last month launched an offensive in Beni against the Islamist Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), one of a number of armed groups that hold territory in the eastern DR Congo and are battling for control of the region&#39;s rich mineral resources.

Beni lies about 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of Goma.

Congolese authorities and the UN mission in DR Congo, MONUSCO, accuse the ADF of killing more than 700 civilians as well as combatants in the Beni region since 2014.

The group is also blamed for the killing of 14 UN peacekeepers last month, the biggest single such loss in 25 years.

Unidentified assailants stabbed 12 patients in their hospital beds in the restive DR Congo city of Goma

Unidentified assailants stabbed 12 patients in their hospital beds in the restive DR Congo city of Goma, with fears it was the work of Ugandan Islamist rebels, officials said on Tuesday. Three of the victims were seriously hurt in the knife rampage overnight Sunday-Monday in two health centres in the Goma district of Mbosho, provincial health minister Martial Kambumbu said. "It is the first time we have seen patients being stabbed in health facilities in Goma," said Etienne Kambale, civil society rapporteur in North Kivu province, of which Goma is the capital. "It is surprising. We are wondering if it was the ADF who have turned up in Goma, because this is the way they killed people in Beni." Government forces last month launched an offensive in Beni against the Islamist Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), one of a number of armed groups that hold territory in the eastern DR Congo and are battling for control of the region's rich mineral resources. Beni lies about 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of Goma. Congolese authorities and the UN mission in DR Congo, MONUSCO, accuse the ADF of killing more than 700 civilians as well as combatants in the Beni region since 2014. The group is also blamed for the killing of 14 UN peacekeepers last month, the biggest single such loss in 25 years.

12 patients stabbed in their hospital beds in DR Congo

Budget cuts are universal but the cut in the budget of United Nations has led to altering of tactical strategy by security forces deployed under the United Nations charter in Congo.

The Indian military is in charge of 15 odd&nbsp;bases in Congo&nbsp;down from 21 because of the budget cut made by the UN. For this reason, a battalion had to be sent back last year which reduced the number of Indian troops around&nbsp;3000&nbsp;to&nbsp;3700.&nbsp;Every penny is paid by the UN, while countries make contribution&nbsp;to the UN Peace Keeping Mission depending upon availability of the troops.

When WION spoke to officers in Goma, it discovered that the concept of Rapid Deployable Battalion and Protection by Projection concepts were born out of necessity and not changed circumstances. As bases get closed, it becomes imperative for the near-by existing bases to provide assistance to the civil society.

When WION contacted Brigadier Vivek Tyagi, Commander of Central Sector of Indian Forces in Congo, he said,&quot; With cuts, force optimisation was a necessity and it needs to be understood. The new concept of operation involving more lean and agile forces adopted by the UK became a functional imperative where challenges for military commander increases several fold.&quot;

This led to junking of the earlier concept of protection by presence. To achieve the aim of stabilisation, it became imperative for the security force to demonstrate its firepower and mobility to send the message that despite&nbsp;its absence it can act quickly to teach lesson to the law breakers. Indian Army covers an area which roughly equals the size of Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in Congo. It statistically boils down to one person per 200 sq km.

This is happening at a time when elections are due in Congo by year end. Even Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal, Egypt and Ukraine had to prune down their forces. Congo also reflects larger international reality of an insular America which&nbsp;feels burdened by world which it tries to lead in hesitatingly today. Sources say that more reduction is expected next year around as civilian administration also wants the presence of foreign forces to be reduced in Congo. 
&nbsp;

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The Indian military is in charge of 15 odd bases in Congo which down from 21 because of the budget cut made by the UN

Budget cuts are universal but the cut in the budget of United Nations has led to altering of tactical strategy by security forces deployed under the United Nations charter in Congo. The Indian military is in charge of 15 odd bases in Congo down from 21 because of the budget cut made by the UN. For this reason, a battalion had to be sent back last year which reduced the number of Indian troops around 3000 to 3700. Every penny is paid by the UN, while countries make contribution to the UN Peace Keeping Mission depending upon availability of the troops. When WION spoke to officers in Goma, it discovered that the concept of Rapid Deployable Battalion and Protection by Projection concepts were born out of necessity and not changed circumstances. As bases get closed, it becomes imperative for the near-by existing bases to provide assistance to the civil society. When WION contacted Brigadier Vivek Tyagi, Commander of Central Sector of Indian Forces in Congo, he said," With cuts, force optimisation was a necessity and it needs to be understood. The new concept of operation involving more lean and agile forces adopted by the UK became a functional imperative where challenges for military commander increases several fold." This led to junking of the earlier concept of protection by presence. To achieve the aim of stabilisation, it became imperative for the security force to demonstrate its firepower and mobility to send the message that despite its absence it can act quickly to teach lesson to the law breakers. Indian Army covers an area which roughly equals the size of Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh in Congo. It statistically boils down to one person per 200 sq km. This is happening at a time when elections are due in Congo by year end. Even Bangladesh, Ghana, Nepal, Egypt and Ukraine had to prune down their forces. Congo also reflects larger international reality of an insular America which feels burdened by world which it tries to lead in hesitatingly today. Sources say that more reduction is expected next year around as civilian administration also wants the presence of foreign forces to be reduced in Congo.

WION in Congo: UN budget cuts lead to altering of strategy by Indian forces

It is unimaginable that a place which witnessed genocide is being considered safe and beautiful. Whatever the reasons, Rwanda with all its history of violence has turned out to be a pretty manicured country.

It took us 5 hours to reach Congo border as cars travelling outside the city could not be driven more than 60 km per hour. It was irritating but surprising that cars have been fitted with GPS system which alerts the authorities when the rule is violated.

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What also stuck my eye was the impressive roads built by the Rwandan government. This is the shape of a country which is not resource rich. It does not produce gold but exports it. The joke is that it all comes from Congo which produces it but cannot export it properly as it gets pilfered away. Another striking detail was the absence of waste and rubbish on the roadside. Mountains looked green and roadsides were clean. I could not spot a plastic on the Rwandan highway.

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Rwanda with all its history of violence has turned out to be a pretty manicured country. (WION)
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I was told that plastic has been banned by the Rwandan government. It is not that success in some areas have changed the fundamental structure of society or killed equality in Rwanda. It&rsquo;s just that some good decisions have been made. But in Kigali, the hilltops continue to be occupied by the rich and poor in the valley. So, there are somethings which don&rsquo;t change.

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Rwanda (WION)
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&nbsp;

Crossing into Congo was easy but the difference was stark. Suddenly beautiful houses dotting lake Kivu gave away to poor housing areas. The well-maintained infrastructure of the other side gave way to shanty towns. I saw hundreds of young men sitting ideally on the roadsides, a clear sign that jobs are few.

You move out of Goma and you realise that roads are a luxury. Few roads have been built in last three years but vast areas of Congo are unconnected.&nbsp; Taxis run on two-wheelers and their areas where it takes 2 days to cover 250 kilometres. Imagine what UN Peace Keeping Mission have to go through in when they are asked to intervene in an area 150 km away.

The condition of the road is also a good indicator. It tells you which part of the city you are travelling in. Congo continues to suffer from the curse of resource. Despite abundant resources, people have not benefitted.&nbsp; Loyalties are divided on tribal identities and roads are considered dangerous as they can unite people and make a nation out of multiple tribes and may even prevent economic plunder. It is for this reason, roads are non-existent in Congo. Congo and Rwanda are a study in contrast. Rwanda is not perfect. It has its inequality and ugliness but Rwanda also demonstrates resilience and political will to make a comeback. Congo, on the other hand, continues to battle the basics.&nbsp;

It is unimaginable that a place which witnessed genocide is being considered safe and beautiful. Whatever the reasons, Rwanda with all its history of violence has turned out to be a pretty manicured country

It is unimaginable that a place which witnessed genocide is being considered safe and beautiful. Whatever the reasons, Rwanda with all its history of violence has turned out to be a pretty manicured country. It took us 5 hours to reach Congo border as cars travelling outside the city could not be driven more than 60 km per hour. It was irritating but surprising that cars have been fitted with GPS system which alerts the authorities when the rule is violated. × What also stuck my eye was the impressive roads built by the Rwandan government. This is the shape of a country which is not resource rich. It does not produce gold but exports it. The joke is that it all comes from Congo which produces it but cannot export it properly as it gets pilfered away. Another striking detail was the absence of waste and rubbish on the roadside. Mountains looked green and roadsides were clean. I could not spot a plastic on the Rwandan highway. Rwanda with all its history of violence has turned out to be a pretty manicured country. (WION) × I was told that plastic has been banned by the Rwandan government. It is not that success in some areas have changed the fundamental structure of society or killed equality in Rwanda. It’s just that some good decisions have been made. But in Kigali, the hilltops continue to be occupied by the rich and poor in the valley. So, there are somethings which don’t change. Rwanda (WION) × Crossing into Congo was easy but the difference was stark. Suddenly beautiful houses dotting lake Kivu gave away to poor housing areas. The well-maintained infrastructure of the other side gave way to shanty towns. I saw hundreds of young men sitting ideally on the roadsides, a clear sign that jobs are few. You move out of Goma and you realise that roads are a luxury. Few roads have been built in last three years but vast areas of Congo are unconnected. Taxis run on two-wheelers and their areas where it takes 2 days to cover 250 kilometres. Imagine what UN Peace Keeping Mission have to go through in when they are asked to intervene in an area 150 km away. The condition of the road is also a good indicator. It tells you which part of the city you are travelling in. Congo continues to suffer from the curse of resource. Despite abundant resources, people have not benefitted. Loyalties are divided on tribal identities and roads are considered dangerous as they can unite people and make a nation out of multiple tribes and may even prevent economic plunder. It is for this reason, roads are non-existent in Congo. Congo and Rwanda are a study in contrast. Rwanda is not perfect. It has its inequality and ugliness but Rwanda also demonstrates resilience and political will to make a comeback. Congo, on the other hand, continues to battle the basics.

WION in Congo: Goma, where roads are considered dangerous

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