Suspended opposition MPs fail to be re-elected

NAURU – Nauru’s President Baron Waqa has been re-elected as an MP in his constituency, with all seats in the 19-member parliament finalised except for two seats in Aiwo.

Voting in the general election was completed on Saturday, but a legal technicality delayed voting in Aiwo constituency with the residents delaying their votes until Monday.

A newly-established Nauru Electoral Commission is conducting the general election for the first time.

There were 67 candidates vying for support from just under 8000 registered voters.

The Government’s official Twitter account said apart from the glitch affecting Aiwo, voting ran smoothly across the island nation.

Finance and Justice Minister David Adeang was returned to parliament, alongside Charmaine Scotty, Shadlog Bernicke and Valdon Dowitogo.

The three Nauru MPs who had been suspended from the last Parliament have lost their seats including former president Sprent Dabwido failed in his re-election bid.

The Nauru government thanked Dabwido as well as other outgoing MPs Matthew Batsiua, Ludwig Scotty and Marcus Stephen for their service.

Another MP who had been suspended in the previous parliament, Dr Kieren Keke, kept his seat in the Yaren constituency, along with Charmaine Scotty who topped the poll there by a wide margin.

Charmaine Scotty was the only woman in the last parliament.

The election is being monitored by international observers, including a team from the Commonwealth led by the former president of Kiribati, Anote Tong.

In an interim statement, Tong congratulated the people of Nauru for “participating peacefully and in high numbers” in Saturday’s general election.

“The process was conducted in a peaceful environment and the voters were able to cast their votes freely without fear or intimidation.”

The Commonwealth Observer Mission is expected to finalise a report on the credibility of the elections before leaving Nauru on July 13.

The ABC reports that political instability has plagued Nauru, with reports of frequent government crackdowns on dissent.

During the election campaign, opposition MPs complained they were denied airtime on local media and prevented from holding campaign rallies.

On Friday, Dabwido said his party had eventually been allowed to run ads on local media after he raised concerns with foreign electoral observers – albeit with one day to go to the election.

The election follows two years of turmoil in the island nation, during which five opposition MPs were suspended from parliament.

In September last year, New Zealand suspended most of its aid funding to the country, citing the “diminishing rule of law”.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop also sought assurances from the Nauruan government, which hosts an Australian-run immigration detention centre, that the rule of law was being upheld and the opposition was being treated fairly.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression has also called on Nauru to withdraw legal changes which restrict freedom of expression, access to internet and social media and freedom of the press.

In December, the Commonwealth Secretariat concluded a fact-finding mission and found that rule of law concerns were being addressed in Nauru, but called on all parties to resolve their political differences.

- PNC sources