Middle slava british in march and the us canada and the European Union have joined the top u. N. Officials in demanding the release of two reuters journalists being held in me in march while alone and killed saul who were arrested earlier this month they were working on stories about the military crackdown thats forced over six hundred fifty thousand range of muslims to go to bangladesh coming up next its inside story by finance. High hopes of continued peace and stability in liberia as gotos choose a new town with a supposed enhanced democracy in a country that has seen its share of violence and what would it mean for the region this is inside story. Hello and welcome to the program. Its the end of an era for africas first female president Ellen Johnson sirleaf into towns the noble peace laureate is stepping down the two men who are running to replace her liberias went to the polls on tuesday in a run a vote that was delayed over allegations of fraud in october first round and if the results of this election holds it will mark the feste time in seventy three years theres been a democratic transition of power weve got two guests in a moment but first mohamed the audio has this update from monrovia. Hours of the polling stations open people are still lining up waiting to cross the momentum around the Runoff Election. This is an election that is crucial to their countrys future and they are eager to avoid but not in as big numbers as they did in october during the first round there were twenty candidates in the contest now only two and their running mates soul the only one full of folks where voters are putting their cost holds of course the issue of. Peace is high on the minds of liberia has them enjoyed between twelve and fifteen years of uninterrupted peace the longest in a moment time and they say they want to ever takes over from president Ellen Johnson sirleaf to be able to manage that piece properly they also want the economy which has suffered greatly due to the uncertainties surrounding the Runoff Election and tire political process to be improved but also want to corruption big issues within the government of. Dealt with present and deals with and if ourself has confessed that it is corruption and the issue of the confining the people of liberia that has been the greatest previous. Lets take a closer look at liberia as history its a country founded by freed slaves from the u. S. And caribbean it declared its independence in eight hundred forty seven more than a century later in one nine hundred eighty of president william tolbert. For more than twenty seven years was deposed in a mystical in one nine hundred eighty nine civil war broke out and losses for fourteen years more than two hundred fifty. Thousand people were killed thousands more mutilated or raped often by fighters who recruited child soldiers three years after the end of the civil war Ellen Johnson sirleaf was sworn into office becoming africas first female president she served two terms lets bring in our guests joining us from the liberian capital monrovia henry boy pflum a director of communications at the National Elections commission and joining us on skype from dakar adama guy a west african analyst and former director of information of the regional bloc coerse and in london alex vines head of the Africa Program at Chatham House welcome to all let me start by asking mr flynn with this so flow how significant is this election for the liberian people. Well this election is quite significant because. This is going to our show any. Leader who would take over from. Alan johnson sirleaf. Is going to be history because for many many years we have a hard. Leader a sitting president turning over willingly and democratically to another person so yes it is historic and it will also be serving as a third consecutive president ial election since the. Civil war. So. The election is quite important and we take it very seriously mr guy in the car is the fact that this is the first time that the librarians will witness a smooth transition into democracy that makes this vote very special for them i think its a very important election not just for a liberians but for the whole of west africa because if you recall when the crisis erupted in liberia in one thousand eight hundred nine the whole world was focused on the first gulf war where Saddam Hussein had invaded on i think in august two thousand who wait and that defeated the war which by the former Bush Administration the first Bush Administration in west africa african nations and echo what decided to intervene in liberia and it took many years not only before fixing the problem militarily but also ensuring that we did help of America Charles taylor did then president was ousted properly in two thousand yeah i think and proper election was organized that help and then just served to take over as president and he has been in power for ten years now this was a succession is good for liberia is good for rest of it is good for africa all. What all mr vine is we have two contenders for the election we have george where and. I what is it that which makes george where you are suddenly the favorite in this election is it his celebrity status or is it because hes been positioning himself as the man who potentially can unify liberians behind him. Well there its a mixture to be honest i mean where is a celebrity i mean he was the fee for Football Player of the year in and that has really got International Tension on him he comes from very humble background in liberia itself hes poorly educated so a lot of liberians from humble backgrounds are supporting him i mean put it another way sixty five percent of liberias population are youth and they see him as antiestablishment and carrying the you folks i mean hes relatively young in his early fiftys so yeah theres a lot of excitement a lot of interest whereas the of a candidate is the Vice President currently and he seemed to represent the establishment his nickname is sleepy joe because at times hes been seen fulling asleep in various meetings that have been filmed on television and the establishment in liberia know him probably would support him. But george where is the one that will disrupt the problems and in my view has improved over the years hes run several times fact he beat Ellen Johnson sirleaf in the first round in a previous election but then lost in the second round. And i think where will be a very strong position i see your point with the flow just as soon as the if the establishment candidate but however has been overshadowed by the by certainly who was laws of the live during his two terms in office but this is someone who says that he has the potential to fix the problems that liberia faces particularly rebuilding the infrastructure and also solving education and tackling poverty what is the general sentiment in nigeria about a bus boycott. Well. You can see it two ways you can see it from the point of. The fido he represents the rule imparted as benny powell twelve years since two thousand and six you can see also from the point. You hear the issue of change that one group has the time you can also hear the issue of the so that a lot of things you hear people quote about campaigning but again for us the Elections Commission i would job is to create the. The environment for people to decide as to whether the want to change what race religion tool age or religion to region change or whatever i mean we normally dont look at you know all the issues we look at. People we educate them how to vote we tell them how to mount a ballot papers for instance i see your point and then weve got a process that we are doing today. Now when i mean whoever wins the election and this is my question for mr guy in the car whether wins the election well have to tackle major challenges sixty percent of the population is under thirty most of the people liberia believe that the government of the failed to tackle issues particularly corruption inefficiency and the Poor Services in the country how do you think someone can tackle those issues when we know that this is one of the poorest nations in africa. It is not going to be easy and that is precisely the reason were actually mr barker dr bach is having problems because the country under so live jensen who is harvard graduate person very bright person has not been making progress in terms of job employment and actually accounting really the investment that the country needs for infrastructure and other things i had the country and suffered from really the decrease in the Commodity Prices and also faced evola which has really dented the image of the country all these things as made the situation now very difficult for whoever comes to power to address the challenges of liberia. Indeed mr where we are probably is the likely winner of this election because i think he has a serious need at this time. We have real problem convincing the International Community to invest in liberia but also really convincing other people that he can do what mrs studies done some once again harvard graduate done but the banker ok u. N. Top of the u. N. D. P. All these things i think will make it where there is the will to face difficulties in other ssion ive met mr block in the hague and i think that is somehow will be all the leader seventy three year old and a bit. A little duck person already even getting into power so ok it will be easy for whoever your point among the to get into office mr vines we know that both candidates have been saying throughout the campaign that they have the keys to a lark the problems. And the potential for growth in the country but we know that this is a country that has constrained finances the revenues have been declining over the last few years. Particularly after the. Outbreak how can the new president move forward when we know that the budget of the state wont be able to compensate for the problems of the country faces. Well at dama guy has already said that the liberian economy has been hit by the legacy of a bubble up but particularly the slowdown the Commodity Prices that bounce back a little bit so whoever is going to be the president has got a massive mountain to climb there isnt enough money in liberia the studying comes a small that the shipping registry as some of your listeners and viewers will know why beer has the second largest shipping registry in the world that its got theyve got rubber they go iron ore. Its going to have to be about diversifying the economy about how to grow cultural production and about improving education and scaling up which is a massive problem for liberia which has a population of forty seven percent of the population are. Literate which means the majority of the population are pretty literate and weve seen this in terms of the scandals about exam results at the university of liberia for example so liberia has a very difficult time ahead and any new president will have to manage expectations but what there is is goodwill for liberia it is a country as you weve heard that has come out of civil war thats been twelve years a stability under the Ellen JohnsonSirleaf Administration this election today is so significant its the first democratic election of a transition between president s since the one nine hundred forty four thats seventy yes as the Electoral Commission has said. A smooth successful election will encourage business investors to and with sense liberia i have no doubt about the whole that is signal to the International Community mr flow move let me ask you this not as a member of the election. Of the communications the possibility of the Elections Commission but as a lay billion both candidates have been talking a lot about si. We know that the United Nations mission mandates comes to an end and generates a thousand and eighteen how is the how crucial is the issue of security for the liberians today when people will meet when people go to the vote and decide who is going to be the president how significant is that factor for the. Guy to you talking about security yes indeed. Its important. The. We are currently working with the joint security talking about elaborate National Police immigration a lot of security forces. Everyone is concerned but again. Weve hard lot we followed a legal bottles head into today. And im sure that having gone to all of the legal. Bottles everyone with said the result thats what we we continue to hope for and as well we we can always hope for. I mean youve youve done your part as Political Parties as i scan and this. Campaign very well. This one almost across the country so we can we can hope that today as we speak it is a time for the voters and they are doing our job as we always been here for i signed a commission is that it can and is which we respect the views you know of the voters because the end of the day constitution said they would decide who leads the country put it nicely for us so for us we are going to guide in the process and we we always sit out now we are not a one fourteen we are neither one Big Decisions we want to provide a platform and will be the want to announce the results ok. There have been some political and democratic changes in parts of africa in recent years last month zimbabwes military took power and forced long time leader Robert Mugabe to resign in august Kenyas Supreme Court made history when it canceled the results of the president ial election forcing a new poll the court later upheld kenyattas victory in october as a rerun in nigeria former military rule no matter what a defeat of the sitting president through the ballot box two years ago while his victory in marked the first time there was a democratic transition of power and one of the first democratic experiences was in ghana which was a one party state but that changed in one thousand nine hundred two when a referendum to a full democracy and a Multi Party System with a guy how significant is this election for the african continent taken into consideration the fact that weve seen some countries beset by divisions or uncertainty broken a fast. On kenya and zimbabwe look election is not. For democracy democracy into is more than just democracy you need respect of law you need a. Good friend of the public coffers you need competent leaders were accurate and we need to understand that africa has an opportunity now place we did not you know rethought fears with the Demographic Dividend and with other assets including the good image that many countries now head but what is happening with democracy now is the wild card you have had all those changes surpluses said that the dimension and this time around you need to take into account in liberia the possibility of a Soccer Player becoming president in a post conflict country so this is really something to be a test torch clearly secondly all. So never forget the other factors in the case of liberia the fact that you have the big chance. Because if mr ware weans along with you well the former wife of charges that are supporters of mr taylor were numerous in liberia would still us question what is happening to our money after all a cost leaders they promised mr taylor that he would not be extradited after all and they didnt respect that and last question in the case of liberia you have the ethnic and not give foreign dividend do ok vision didnt exist between the former African Americans and the liberian born within the country mr all i think i see a democracy is good but you know as well as the real question that should be addressed with an african or given an opportunity mr vines a smooth transition to democracy in liberia is likely to further consolidate democratic gains in africa and put and and to the chaos and disorder that weve seen in many countries look. Africa is diverging there are different types of democracy emerging what im hopeful for is that the part of africa that liberia sits in is called the manna reveal union so i think a syria leone think a court did was think of guinea the neighbors of liberia now ten years ago the country was in a very poor state it has just finished a civil war thats a civil war that i myself have worked in as a as a u. N. Sanctions inspector that the country has stabilized now and so a Successful Transition here particularly if the opposition parties or the parties in general accept the result that happens today that they dont go for a perpetual challenge for the courts that will be important for liberia then i think its about what type of government emerges in liberia with the next president. If its george where does he have good advise us how will his Vice President behave and weve heard that you know she is the former wife of the strongman Charles Taylor those are the sorts of things that people will be watching but i have to say we do have to celebrate that liberia is going through a democratic transition head of a sort that we have not seen for seventy is very significant sure we can we cannot talk about this without giving credit to. President sirleaf missa flow how would she be remembered by the liberian is she going to be more remembered by being the person who ensured this smooth transition to democracy or building a robust economy for many years. Its going to depend where. One stance or school of thought war war will come from but yes indeed. Two in africa given the history u. S. Has alluded to see a president willing to turn over on just to turn over power of the two of us i think its a legacy that we will remember forever years again being the first elected president after the civil war yes it depends where you stand but i do anybody you want to see she did her best saw. To it after today. That person cant win a bill from where shes talking so and the way you tick you shes going to be remembered you know for. All i see yes and as i said it doesnt matter its so ok i mean this is where where where youre. Going to vote is in the divided sentiments about her mr guy were talking about someone who has over time in a very smooth democratic fashion and i think something which is very important in a continent like africa very briefly please. Yeah i think its fantastic and i think that. The thirty she has played a very Important Role by the way she wrote before all of my last book tomorrow do you actually to and i know her quite well for over twenty years ive seen how resilient she has been in power in very difficult conditions she could have chosen to remain a bit of a bank somewhere in the us or to be do former head of the d. P. For us in new york and other ok were running out of those opportunities which you started to come back and work but i think transition to democracy now is something that is her greatest legacy what we want is an exam minus of african calyx minus the somewhat also who met. Sirleaf when he served in liberia. What do you make of her contribution to the country and her her legacy. There are three legacies first is that she is the first woman president in africa thats a legacy second is shes a Nobel Prize Winner she said she shared the Nobel Peace Prize and thirdly in her twelve years liberia was at peace thats a greatest legacy she leaves a country at peace shes stepping down as president thank you very much indeed with a flow with a guy in the midst of vines thank you very much indeed for your contribution and thank you to a fortune you can see the program again any time by visiting our website as you know dot com for further discussion go to our Facebook Page thats facebook dot com forward slash a. J. Inside story you can also join the conversation on twitter there is a j s i story from we have so much about the whole team here by for now. Architect is like god because you create things shining in korea and Building Full glory yes mean larry shifts her attention to the disaster stricken regions of pakistan and building upon traditional techniques and people with the knowledge needed to sustain the societies rebel take to the traditional feel at this time on how to see a. January on jesse the african heads of states and governments will gather in for the thirtieth assembly of the African Union where the goals set out say in twenty seventeen minutes rewind returns with brand new episodes updating some of the best aljazeera documentaries from over the years the biggest names in politics in business will meet in the swiss alps for the World Economic forum what will be talk of the agenda mad the aasan engages in rigorous debate cutting through the headlines on the front and in a week of special coverage will be gauging reaction from around the world to americas most controversial president of modern times january on aljazeera the head of the september twenty Fourth NationalElection Survey showed job and was satisfied with the state of their economy this is easily a start his biggest tech Success Story the company was bought by microsoft in two thousand and eleven we bring you the stories that are shaping the economic world we live in counting the cost at this time on aljazeera. 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