Egypt vote monitors “beaten, barred access”

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2005/September/middleeast_September213.xml§ion=middleeast&col=

CAIRO - Independent groups trying to monitor Egypt’s landmark presidential vote on Wednesday charged that their representatives had been barred access to polling stations and even beaten up.

The electoral commission announced two hours after polling opened that independent monitors would be allowed to work inside polling stations, after opposition groups voiced fears of widespread fraud, rescinding a previous ban.

“Monitors, in most cases, are still not being allowed access inside the polling stations despite this morning’s announcement by Mahmud Marai, chairman of the presidential electoral committee to the contrary,” a coalition of monitoring groups said.

Monitors have been “beaten, apprehended and interrogated,” especially in southern Egypt, the Independent Committee for Election Monitoring said in a preliminary report.

[Lori Price CLG]

1. If the gov't just gets Diebold, they won't have to go through all that.

[bobbieinok]

2. improving on Rehnquist, right????

[Benhurst]

3. This makes me feel all warm inside.

BushAmerican-style democracy is spreading all over the world.

:puke:

[ReadTomPaine]

4. Trickle down fascism. n/t