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UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

SOMALIA: Kahin confirmed as president, opposition unhappy

NAIROBI, 12 May 2003 (IRIN) - The constitutional court of the self-declared republic of Somaliland on Sunday confirmed the incumbent president, Dahir Riyale Kahin, as the winner of last month's presidential election, local sources told IRIN on Monday.

On 19 April, the Somaliland Election Commission (SEC) declared Kahin of the Unity of Democrats Party (UDUB) the winner of Somaliland's first multiparty presidential election, which was held five days earlier.

According to the SEC, Kahin obtained 205,595 votes (42.08 percent of the poll), as opposed to 205,515 (42.07 percent) for Silanyo, out of a total vote of 498,639 votes cast - a difference of just 80 votes.

The presidential candidate for the Kulmiye (Solidarity) Party, Ahmad Muhammad Silanyo - Kahin's main challenger - told IRIN at the time that his party "categorically rejected" the results of the elections.

Kulmiye is said to be unhappy with the court's ruling, and "the party's top brass have been in meetings throughout the day to consider the next step", a Kulmiye official told IRIN.

The official said that Kulmiye "does not recognise UDUB as the winner of the elections". "The court's ruling is not based on the facts and is an injustice," he said.

He added that the party leadership would issue an official statement "once consultations are concluded".

Somaliland, a former British protectorate, declared independence from the rest of Somalia in 1991 after the collapse of the Siyad Barre government, but has not been internationally recognised. Over the past decade, it has moved away from conflict, while the rest of Somalia has been locked in civil strife.

Themes: (IRIN) Governance

[ENDS]

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