October 2006 depart for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) ahead of the 29
October 2006 Presidential and Provincial elections
20 October 2006
Kinshasa - The 108-member South African Observer Mission will on Saturday,
21 October 2006, depart for the Democratic Republic of Congo ahead of the
Congolese Presidential and Provincial elections scheduled to take place on 29
October 2006.
The South African Observer Mission's participation in overseeing the second
round of the historic DRC democratic elections is within the context of South
Africa's commitment to resolving conflicts on the African continent and
establishing democratic institutions.
In this regard, the South African Observer Mission will from 21 October to 2
November 2006 observe all phases of the elections, including election
campaigns, the voting process and the counting of votes.
The South African Observer Mission, the largest ever to be dispatched by the
South African government, will be deployed in all the eleven (11) provinces in
the DRC
The South African Observer Mission comprises of Members of Parliament,
government officials, representatives of civil society (including women and
youth), business people, religious leaders, trade unionists and individual
South Africans with experience in observing elections.
The South African government has again given the responsibility of leading
the South African observer mission to Deputy Defence Minister Mluleki George,
who also led the mission during the 30 July elections.
The presidential elections will be contested by the current President Joseph
Kabila and Vice President Jean Pierre Bemba.
Enquiries:
Vincent Hlongwane
Tel: 082 385 1169
Issued by: Department of Foreign Affairs
20 October 2006
Source: SAPA
