Foreign

Referendum: CAR’s Opposition Says Touadéra on Sit-Tight Agenda

By Web News 389

The Central African Republic president is asking voters to support abolishing term limits in a referendum backed by Russia’s Wagner mercenary group.

Wagner, which has troops and business interests in the country, is providing security for the referendum.

The main opposition has called for a boycott of the referendum, accusing President Faustin-Archange Touadéra of wanting to become president-for-life.

Mr Touadéra has grown ties with Russia since French forces withdrew in 2022.

His supporters say that constitutional limits on presidential terms are “uncommon” in the region, and the proposed changes will help achieve stability and development.

The CAR has been plagued by rebellions and coups for decades, with a powerful coalition of rebel groups trying to oust Mr Touadéra.

On Wednesday, Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin said hundreds of its fighters had arrived in the resource-rich country as part of “a planned rotation before the referendum”, according to the Afrique Media website linked to the Russian group.

It quoted Mr Prigozhin as saying that “we control the territory of CAR and we are convinced that the gangs will not be able to harass the population”.

A UN peacekeeping in CAR is also providing security for the referendum.

But Wagner is increasingly seen as the main group on which Mr Touadéra’s government relies to remain in power, and to fight rebels.

Wagner has had at least 1,000 forces in CAR since 2018, and has also developed huge business interests in the country.

It reportedly trades in the minerals and timber industries.

Earlier this week, Mr Prigozhin was photographed shaking hands with Ambassador Freddy Mapouka, a CAR presidential advisor, at a Russia-Africa summit in St Petersburg.

France, the former colonial power, pulled its last forces out of CAR in 2022. It first sent about 1,600 troops to the country after a coup in 2013 unleashed a civil war.

As CAR moved to restore democracy, Mr Touadéra was elected president in 2016 and won a second term in 2020.

But he has been accused of becoming increasingly authoritarian, and his critics say the referendum is the latest sign of his attempt to extend his power.

If the changes to the constitution are approved, it would allow Mr Touadéra to seek a third term in 2025.

It would also raise the presidential term from five to seven years and allow the president to appoint more judges to the Supreme Court.

BBC/Simeon Ugbodovon

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Foreign

Central African Republic Declares Emergency as Rebels Surround Bangui

By Web News 847

The Central African Republic (CAR) has declared a state of emergency as the army and UN forces try to repel advancing rebel groups who want to overthrow the government.

The anti-government fighters, who now control two-thirds of the country, have surrounded the capital, Bangui.

The UN envoy to CAR has warned the country was “at grave risk.”

The rebels dispute the validity of President Faustin Archange Touadéra’s re-election in last month’s poll.

The authorities have accused former President François Bozizé, who was blocked from running in the 27 December election, for the escalating violence.

“The perpetrators… of these unforgettable crimes against the people of CAR will be found, arrested and brought before the competent courts,” President Touadéra said on Monday, while also calling for national reconciliation.

Mr Bozizé, who came to power in 2003 before he was overthrown in 2013, had denied the allegations.

At least 60,00 civilians have fled the country due to recent fighting.

Call for more UN peacekeepers

The state of emergency declared on Thursday evening will last for 15 days, the government spokesman Albert Yaloke Mokpeme said on national radio.

He said soldiers will be allowed to make arrests without going through prosecutors.

CAR “is at serious risk of a security and peacebuilding setback,” said Mankeur Ndiaye, the UN envoy to the country.

He urged the UN Security Council to increase the number of peacekeepers with a flexible mandate, that allows them to respond to the escalating security challenges in the country.

Mr Ndiaye did not specify the security resources he wanted to be deployed but the Reuters news agency, quoting a source close to the UN mission, Minusca, reported that CAR needed 3,000 extra peacekeepers, attack helicopters and even special forces.

According to Mr Ndiaye, large numbers of government troops have deserted due to insufficient training and resources.

At least 12,000 peacekeepers are already on the ground in CAR.

Ahead of the December election, Rwanda and Russia sent in reinforcements to help the government. France has also sent in military resources to back President Touadéra’s government.

BBC