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Democratic Republic of Congo
The world should not recognise Congo's stolen election
When the constitutional court declared him the next president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Félix Tshisekedi toasted his victory with a glass of champagne. He was due to be inaugurated as The Economist went to press. Optimists chirp that this is Congo's first peaceful transfer of power since independence in i960. South Africa's president, Cyril Ramaphosa, congratulated Mr Tshisekedi and urged "all stakeholders" to accept the result and "continue with a journey of consolidating peace, uniting the people of Congo, and creating a better life for all".
What a travesty. The election was really won by Martin Fayulu, a former oil executive-and by a wide margin. Bishops from the Catholic church, one of Congo's few functional and respected institutions, sent out 40,000 observers. According to their tally Mr Fayulu won more than 60% of the vote. This matched data leaked by officials, which showed that 59% backed him. Mr Tshisekedi came a distant second with 19% of the vote. Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, a former interior minister handpicked to succeed Joseph Kabila, the unpopular incumbent, won a paltry 18.5% (see Middle East & Africa section).
It is hard to exaggerate the...