Gabon violence: Two killed amid protests over re-election of Ali Bongo wha

Two people have been killed in overnight clashes between demonstrators and security forces in Gabon's capital Libreville after disputed elections.

The deaths bring the number killed to five following a second day of violence.

Security forces in Gabon have arrested more than 1,000 people since the presidential vote.

Protests began after Wednesday's announcement that President Ali Bongo had narrowly been re-elected.

Africa Live: More on this and other African news stories

Too many voters? By Elizabeth Blunt, former BBC journalist and election observer

You never get a 98% or 99% turnout in an honest election. You just don't.

Voting is compulsory in Gabon, but it is not enforced; even in Australia where it is enforced, where you can vote by post or online and can be fined for not voting, turnout only reaches 90-95%.

The main reason that a full turnout is practically impossible is that electoral registers, even if they are recently compiled, can rarely be 100% up-to-date.

Even if no-one gets sick or has to travel, people still die. And when a register is updated, new voters are keen to add themselves to the list.

No-one, however, has any great enthusiasm for removing the names of those who have died, and over time the number of these non-existent voters increases.

How to spot signs of possible election rigging

The UN, which has expressed "deep concern" over the escalation of violence, joined the US and former colonial power France in calls for restraint and greater transparency about the election results.

Comments

Audio | Ali Kiba Ft. M.I - AJE | Mp3 Download

World heading for catastrophe over natural disasters, risk expert warns

The world’s failure to prepare for natural disasters will have “inconceivably bad” consequences as climate change fuels a huge increase in catastrophic droughts and floods and the humanitarian crises that follow, the UN’s head of disaster planning has warned. Last year, earthquakes, floods, heatwaves and landslides left 22,773 people dead, affected 98.6 million others and caused $66.5bn (£47bn) of economic damage(pdf). Yet the international community spends less than half of one per cent of the global aid budget on mitigating the risks posed by such hazards.

QN: HIIT: Is there a shortcut to exercise?

We all know that exercise is good for us, but often struggle to do the 150 minutes of moderate level activity a week that's recommended. So what's the alternative, asks Michael Mosley. A few years ago, while making a Horizon documentary called The Truth about Exercise I was introduced to something which changed my life - HIIT or High Intensity Interval Training . Typically you do a few very short bursts of intense cycling on an exercise bike, with brief recovery periods. The promise of HIIT is that you will get maximum benefit in minimum time - and that is certainly what I have found. But how well does it compare to other forms of exercise? With the help of researchers from Nottingham University we decided to find out. We started by recruiting a group of 24 volunteers, aged between 40 and 60, who all have jobs and lifestyles that are best described as "pretty sedentary". We then divided them into four groups.

Haso-Design Studio

Search This Blog