Military

DATE=10/23/00

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=IVORY COAST ELECTIONS/OBSERVERS

BYLINE=NANCY PALUS

DATELINE=ABIDJAN

CONTENT:

VOICED AT:

INTRO: In Ivory Coast, voters went to the polls Sunday, in an election that was largely outside the scrutiny of international observers. The one major observer group that did monitor the polls, a European Union team, is preparing to release its findings (Eds. Note: timing uncertain, which are likely to cite irregularities occurring in the weeks leading up to the election. Nancy Palus reports from the commercial capital, Abidjan.

TEXT: The European Union sent a mission of 30 observers to monitor Ivory Coast's presidential election, a sharp cut from the originally planned 100 person team.

The E-U group was the only international mission left, after several teams pulled out when the military government disqualified several key candidates earlier this month. The international community has long been skeptical about the election process here, especially after it became clear that military ruler General Robert Guei would run. Sunday's election is supposed to return the country to civilian rule, following Ivory Coast's first coup last December.

Gwyn Morgan is the chief observer for the E-U team, which has been in Ivory Coast for several weeks, monitoring activities leading up to the election. He says that while on election day the team saw no signs of outright fraud, he cannot say the same for the period leading up to the polls.

///MORGAN ACT///

I must distinguish between the period running up to the election day and the election day. In the weeks running up to election day, we saw certain things that we don't like. When I make my final declaration I'll be mentioning some of these.

///END ACT///

Last week, sources told V-O-A that they witnessed civilians being taken to military barracks and forced to mark ballots next to General Guei's name. There were also reports that people in military uniforms were harassing merchants for money to finance the elections. The national electoral commission last week launched an investigation into the allegations.

The E-U, like the other observer groups, was dismayed at the Ivory Coast Supreme Court's decision to bar several candidates from running. While the E-U did decide to keep a team of 30 monitors in place, Mr. Morgan says the court's decision to shut out candidates shifted the nature of the E-U observers' mission.

///2nd MORGAN ACT///

We of course did not go ahead with our 70 short-term observers because of the diminution in the list of candidates who were allowed to proceed to the vote. Also, we're here for information as well as observation. It was changed from the original intention; it was going to be a classical electoral observation mission.

///OPT/// The Organization of African Unity announced earlier this month that it would not send observers to monitor the Ivory Coast election. It rejected a later appeal by General Guei to send in monitors. The United Nations also opted against coordinating observer teams, after several countries decided not to send monitors. ///END OPT///

Meanwhile, longtime opposition leader Laurent Gbagbo, the one candidate in Sunday's race seen as posing a serious challenge to General Guei, placed his own representatives in all of the more than 16-thousand polling stations to monitor the process. He warned the military leader against fraud, saying he and his backers would take to the streets should General Guei try to steal the election. (SIGNED)

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