DR CONGO: Thousands dance in Bukavu streets after radio announces local election results putting Joseph Kabila ahead in the eastern city

Crowds of Joseph Kabila supporters took to the street, singing and dancing in Bukavu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday night (July 31) after a local radio station announced local victory for President Joseph Kabila following Sunday's (July 30) historic poll. Radio Mandeleo announced that President Joseph Kabila had received approximately 95% of the votes for the city. Chanting "Kabila, the only President!", the revellers, a majority of whom were teenagers, danced from different neighbourhoods to the centre of town, some stopping and congregating around bonfires before moving on to popular gathering place, 'Place de 24 Novembre'. United Nations peacekeepers maintained a presence with Pakistani units patrolling the area, although the celebrations remained non-violent, following a trend on non-violence that began when Congolese started voting on Sunday. President Joseph Kabila, the current president of the transitional government, in power since the signing of a peace agreement in 2003, is favoured strongly in Bukavu and among the country's youth in general. The east of the country has until now been under the control of Rwandan-backed rebel group the 'Rassemblement Congolais Pour la Democratie' (RCD) during the civil war. The elections are the first democratic elections to be held since 1965. There are 25.7 million Congolese registered to vote. Results for Sunday's poll will only be released on September 14.

ITN Source | August 2, 2006

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