Grenade explodes near polling station in the capital as voting starts amid a boycott by the opposition and criticism from overseas

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

Burundians trickled to the polls on Monday in parliamentary elections marred by grenade attacks, an opposition boycott and international condemnation.

The ballot, which at times saw officials outnumber voters at some polling stations, came after weeks of turbulence triggered by a defiant bid for a third term by the president, Pierre Nkurunziza.

Burundi election goes ahead despite claims president's bid is 'illegal' Read more

Almost 4 million people were registered to vote in the parliamentary polls, which precede Nkurunziza’s run in presidential elections on 15 July. But the opposition refused to take part, as they did in 2010, claiming it was not possible to hold a fair ballot. Civil society groups also called on voters to skip the “sham elections” and urged the international community not to recognise the result.

Voting on Monday was delayed in many areas after armed groups fired weapons and threw grenades, police said. Another grenade detonated in the capital, Bujumbura, soon after polling got under way.

Nkurunziza, popular in rural areas for his down-to-earth style, reportedly cycled from his village in north Burundi to vote at a nearby polling station. He told al-Jazeera “this is a great day for Burundi” because people were exercising their democratic right.

Ruling party campaign chief Willy Nyamitwe, who is also Nkurunziza’s head of communications, told Agence France-Presse he was “very satisfied”, adding that the “people responded massively and early”.

Election commission chief Pierre-Claver Ndayicariye also claimed that “participation was enormous throughout the country”.

Independent reports, however, suggested that the turnout was low, either because of support for the boycott or because people were too afraid to go to polling stations despite a heavy police presence.

No official figures were available, but queues were short and turnout sparse in Bujumbura. Opposition leader Pacifique Nininahazwe, who organised anti-government protests before fleeing into exile, told AFP: “They invent the numbers. For us, there is no election today.”

Another opposition leader, Charles Nditije, criticised “a parody of elections, unfair polls without any credibility,” denouncing what he said was electoral fraud and claiming voters could cast ballots without needing to show identification.

Aimable Niyonkuru, 20, once a supporter of Nkurunziza’s CNDD-FDD party, said he would not participate. “I am really disappointed about what all politicians are doing, I think that they are not patriotic,” he told Reuters.

The elections went ahead without the blessing of the international community. Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary general, has called for them to be delayed after the opposition said they would not participate.

The EU condemned Burundi’s “grave” decision to hold elections, saying it would worsen the situation. “The organisation of legislative elections … can only exacerbate the profound crisis which is gripping Burundi,” it said on Monday.

The US suspended technical assistance to Burundi’s electoral commission and the African Union refused to send observers to the polls as the “necessary conditions are not met for the organisation of free, fair, transparent and credible elections”.

But the pan-African body was criticised for not intervening earlier. Jeffrey Smith, Africa policy officer at the Robert F Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, said: “What has been playing out in Burundi, including today’s fraud election, is clearly the result of a failure of leadership and a lack of fortitude displayed by the African Union.”

He added: “Instead of taking a serious stand against Nkurunziza’s illegal bid to stand for a third term, AU leaders, including the current chairman Robert Mugabe, made light of the situation and openly joked about it during the recently concluded AU summit.

“Problem is, no one is laughing, and the deteriorating situation in Burundi is a hugely significant blow to the AU’s already damaged brand and credibility.”

Burundi, one of the world’s poorest countries, was plunged into crisis in late April when Nkurunziza launched his drive for a third consecutive five-year term, triggering protests.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Pierre Nkurunziza, centre wearing cap, stands in line to vote. Photograph: Gildas Ngingo/AP

Opponents say his bid is unconstitutional and violates a peace accord that paved the way for the end of the 13-year civil war in 2006.

On the eve of the election, Pie Ntavyohanyuma, a senior ruling party official and parliamentary speaker, said he had joined some 127,000 other Burundians who have fled the country since Nkurunziza’s decision.

“The mandate he wants to have is illegal,” Ntavyohanyuma told broadcaster France 24 on Sunday. “I would like to say to him that forcing through the election is senseless.”

More than 70 people have been killed in weeks of violence and a failed coup sparked by Nkurunziza’s bid to stay in power, with a series of grenade attacks in recent days. Several top officials – including deputy vice-president Gervais Rufyikiri and members of the electoral commission and constitutional court – have also fled.

Election results are expected on Tuesday. Under the constitution, based on peace deals that ended the civil war, there are strict ethnic quotas in parliament. It must be made up of 60% from the majority Hutu people – who make up some 85% of the population – with the remaining 40% of elected seats reserved for the minority Tutsi.