tanzanians go to the polls as the ruling party try to hold on to half a century of power. you're watching al jazeera live from our headquarters in doha. i'm dorena bogeda. also ahead. ivory coast president is pegged to win another round in office.

and montenegro elections. and mexico and the u.s. deal with flash-flooding. hello, polls have offend in what's expected to be the tightest ever election in tanzania. the rooubl rulings party ccm han in power for 50 years following independence. trying the capitalize on public discontent. catherine soy reports from dar al salaam. >> under immense pressure. edward lowassa left ccm in july after being denied the

opportunity to be involved in this the election. has denied fraud and is promising change. >> we will lead you well, get you out of poverty, fight corruption. >> ccm's minister for work is credited for infrastructure in tanzania, says he will continue that job. >> understanding the excitement and intensity around this election and the ruling party ccm is facing its most fierce competition. a lot of people are saying, this poll could go any way. the only woman candidate is a newcomer. she pledged to revive collapsed

industries. >> as the real serious alternative, government is possible but maybe if not, then a very serious opposition. >> analysts say none of the candidates are giving realistic plans of how they'll transform this still emerging democracy. >> if someone can welcome the democracy from the sea of transition into an l island of transformation where you see the country having a direction. >> just over 22 million people are registered to vote. those we talked to hope the election will be free, fair and that their leaders will be true to their many promises. >> around now we can cross over to catherine soy who is joining us from dar al salaam to set the

scene for us. >> absolutely, doreen. it's been very organized so far at least where i am. the exercise has been very smooth. people arrive very early, they just want to vote early so they can go home and go about their business and wait for election results. they've been waiting very patiently, in queues, everything is going well. we made some phone calls to several other polling stations and we are told things are going smooth. no incidents at all. one of the voters today he was here when polls open, he is still waiting to cast his ballot. thank you for joining us. tell us, everyone is talk become change and transformation. what kind of change do you want to see? >> i think our country has many

problems especially main problem is this corruption blunders. so i'm expecting new coming government will work on that. and at least we could see the change. when there is no corruption. a new tanzania without corruption. >> do you think that these leaders on that ballot paper, do you think there's any of them that can really make that change, do they fulfill that? >> they haven't committed themselves regarding the time line of their promises. i'm not so sure. but i think as a citizen, we need to stick together after this election, and push them to do what they promised us. >> are you confident that this election is going to be free and fair, and that your vote is going to be respected? >> 100% sure. >> why do you --

>> all right i apologize for that audio glitch it seems we're having with catherine soy and her guest out of tanzania. but we'll move on to the i've riz coast now because people --. president has been expected to win a second term in office. five years ago he beat his main rival who refused to leave office. more than 3,000 people were killed in postelection violence there. bagba was on trial in his role in the unrest. tanya page, with bagbo at the hague does the candidate have

any competition? >> although there are seven presidential candidates he doesn't have any strong competition. he's the only one of the three dominant characters at ivoryian politics. doesn't really hold the confidence and support of many of bagbo's former supporters. they believe that he doesn't represent the ideals that they believed under bagbo and they're not going to vote for him. the other big character is not standing. he's in a coalition government at the moment and has sit out of this presidential race. that is a problem because it leaves to voter apathy which may damage the credibility of the selection and potentially some frustration which could result in some violence as well. >> that's what i wanted to ask you tanya about the general mood

there, are there fears of violence? >> look, it's fair to say that at this time, at the last election, this was a very different country. and one really that was very tense, as well. this time around, things quite different. however, we know that in the west, in bagbo's former strongholds there are a plot of military in the street, they are patrolling, keeping a high presence, and police are on the street mounted with machine guns. if people aren't voting they may feel apathetic from the sluks, selection and nonetheless, if there is any potential for violence we believe and obviously security forces also believe that it could be in those regions. put we are just going -- but we

are just going to have to see what results. easily said most people in the country don't want to see anything like what happened last time. but nonetheless i think everyone is quite conscious and real thaisk there irealisticthat ther trouble. >> all right tanya thank you. under current rules the president cannot run for athird term and cannot be over the age of 70. well the incumbent, dennis sassu is 71 years old and has already served two seven year terms. politicians have called for acampaign of civil disobedience. russia saying it's willing to provide air support to the free syrian army. in its fight against the islamic state of iraq and the levant. referring by bashar al-assad all

groups as terrorists. preventing moscow from supporting the free syrian army. >> the americans refusal to coordinate their antiterrorist campaign with us is a big mistake. we are seriously prepared for such coordination and we are ready to give air support to the patriotic opposition called the free syrian army. but we need to contact the authorities who represent certain armed groups. >> israeli and palestine have agreed on some key rules for al-aqsa mosque. the new measures were outlined by the u.s. secretary of state john kerry after a meeting with the palestinian authority president mahmoud abbas. >> today, i hope we can begin to turn the page on this very difficulty period.

we have to join together, in calling for an immediate end to violence. we must stress the importance of avoiding provocative actions and rhetoric and we must work cooperatively. it's the only way to go forward. >> three balkan states have threatened to shut their bothers, bulgaria it along with roromania and serbia will close its borders should germany and austria do the same. the warning comes as thousands of refugees continue to enter europe. police in montenegro's capital have fired tear gas to disperse thousands of protesters. opposition supporters were marching to parliament demanding the resignation of the prime

minister who is been in power for 25 years. the demonstration began peacefully but turned violent after people started throwing molotov cocktails and stones at police. the country's determination to join nato, don't justify the government to resign. >> we are talking about the economy. we are not the leader only in european interventions or atlantic interventions but also those for investment. so if you are going to compare us with our neighbors we are the leaders. we can talk about really bad economy. if we are talking about corruption and organized crime there's a problem in all traditional countries. it is not a problem in montenegro more or less than other countries. that couldn't be reason for asking for resign of one

government. all of our elections was held in a democratic way and european union, western observers, everybody for years, doesn't see anything abnormal there. >> here's what's coming up on al jazeera, indonesia's government will begin an emergency evacuation for children because of toxic haze. and the rugby world cup.

>> the headlines on al jazeera. voling is underway in what is expected to be the tightest election in tanzania since independence. capitalizing on public didiscontent. police in montenegro have fired on hundreds of protesters. the government's decision to join necessitating has angered protestors. credited with an economic revival in ivory coast. it's an end of a political era in argentina. president cristina kirchner is stepping down after eight years in power. teresa vo has the story from

buenos aires. >> for 15 years he has been working as a scrap merchant. he works on the streets everyday and says until now it has pen difficult to find a job. >> i struggle to make ends meet. i make around four or $500 a month. with the recession, everyone is struggling. >> they head to the polls on sunday to elect a new president. cristina kirchner and her husband nestor have dominated argentine politics for decades. after the economic crisis of 2001 they took over government, manipulation of national statistics.

with the kirchners in power, they establishmented changes that helped the elderly and the government has implemented protectionist ltsd policies to benefit the economy. >> when the government shut down imports our business improved. local production has improved. >> but argentina is divided between supporters and detractors of the government. in the last years, the government popularity has dropped because of the high inflation rate and the levels of confrontation between the cristina kirchner and her opponents. >> cristina is always comparing

what happened today and 2001. we are doubtless better than 2001 but if the growth rate is zero that's not good at all. >> 12 year after the kirchners came to power, whoever comes next will not forget about people like him. teresa vo al jazeera, buenos aires. >> hurricane patricia has been down graded to a tropical depression. it is still causing flooding in mexico and u.s. state of texas but not the widespread danger that it was feared. lucia newman reports. >> mexicans had prepared or the the worst fearing the most powerful hurricane ever to hit the western hemisphere could cause catastrophic damage and loss of life. fueled by record temperatures in the pacific ocean, hurricane

patricia made landfall with winds surpassing 250 kilometers per hour. trees and telephone posts were sent flying, streets were flooded and crops were destroy destroyed. but luckily as the hurricane made its entrance like a raging bull, it quickly encountered the tall pacific mountains which took much of the wind out of what seemed like the perfect storm. nonetheless even down graded to a tropical depression, patricia continues to be dangerous, dumping torrential rain as it moves north. as it reached texas, flooding was so severe, a union pacific train was derailed. in mexico there's still danger of flooding and mudslides especially in poor areas. this is why president enrique

pena nieto is warning residents. >> i insist, we expect intense rains from the pacific and various states in the central and northeastern parts of the country. >> reporter: many of the tens of thousands of people evacuated remain in shelters. the home is when the storm passes and the rain finally stops, those in the most vulnerable places will be found safe. lucia newman, mexico city. >> dilma rousseff has seen the damage caused after seeing rivers overflow their banks, especially in rio grande del sol. hundreds of civilians have been killed over the past seven

months. houthi blockade of the city has left residents with shortage of food and no access to medical care. large parts of nepal still lie in ruins waiting for reconstruction work to begin six months after a massive earthquake. subina shrestha is there. >> reporter: chomo was burr idead in the village, when the 7.8 magnitude earthquake swept across the country. >> i stay with my uncle and aunt, family who used to guide me. now i have to help them navigate the city. it's difficult to see them struggle. >> the teenagers are always together now.

>> it feels like a dream at times and i struggle to accept it. the mind races with thoughts and i wonder how to manage and live. >> 308 people lived in this town. people from this town are from a tight knit community and after the tragedy the community bond has become stronger. while much of the valley remains uninhabitable locals have gone back and try to rebuild their broken homes and revive tourism, the only income in the area. >> become a community organizer. >> at least one or two people have already returned to the village. we have cattle that need care, especially with coming winter. we can't afford to wait for the government. >> now living with four other families. 15 people in a two bedroom flat.

she lost her mother, pema in the quake. i miss my mother i miss everything about her she says. this is how she used to pinch our cheeks. norbu was in the village and was saved by his father. every person has lost a mother, brother, husband and wife. the government had allocated money spent on that center but not a penny has been spent yet. while the government does little to help people rebuild their lives the survivors rely on each other and the funds they've been able to raise between well wishers. subina shrestha, al jazeera, kathmandu. >> seven people were injured in shelling on saturday.

india and pakistan have accused each other of violating a peace pact that was violated in 2003. months after border commanders from both sides held talks. emergency evacuations of babies and children have been ordered by indonesia's government because of toxic smoke. millions of others being affected by the haze that spread over large parts of asia and it's believed to have been caused by indonesian farmers and large companies setting fire to forests to clear lands. step vaessen reports. somewhere. >> reporter: millions of indonesians have been forced to breathe toxic smoke for at least five months now, because of fires burning in large plantations. the smoke contains dangerous

chemicals like carbon monoxide. one of the 15 month old latifa who had been a happy, healthy baby, she died struggling for oxygen. her parents are angry at companies and farmers who continue to burn vegetation to clear their land. >> translator: those who burn are not using their brain. otherwise they would think about the impact on other people and they would know it would create this haze. clearly, those who one are greedy. >> reporter: scientists conclude that these greenhouse gases have been emitted more than across the entire united states. >> it's not enough to wait for the rain to come and douse the fires. there must be more sense of

emergency. >> reporter: there's anger among the millions who have been forced to breathe poison oust haze for five months now. those in the affected area say their plight is being ignored. after losing her baby sister latifa, 13-year-old erin is afraid of the smoke haze. while others won't aware their masks, she won't take hers off. >> we have rule of law in this country. although i have lit 48th in our law system. it's the only thing can i hang onto. >> reporter: police have named 17 companies of causing the fire. three have lost their licenses but environmental groups say they are a small part of a much larger problem. with fires spreading out of

control latifa's family hope that something can be done about this man made disaster. step vaessen, al jazeera. >> final of the rugby world cup, the all blacks are hopeful to win back to back world cups. lee well wellings reports. >> south africa had won two of the previous three world cup encounters including the famous final of 95. >> i'm looking for a ten point victory for new zealand. >> cano kept his head to score

the first goal of the match after five minutes. but south africa was far from being outplayed. they were the better team in the first half and took them to a 12-7 lead. new zealand were pressing relentlessly out front. it had turned into another tense world cup classic. the all blacks managed to keep the ball in south africa territory and they won it 20 points to 18. >> the end could have gone either way. we're just thankful and humble that we're given the opportunity to go on to the forum next week. >> the second semi final between argentina and new zealand will also take make at twickenham.

lee wellings, at london. >> you can find all the latest at aljazeera.com. azeera.com. >> this week on talk to al jazeera - the first prosecutor of the international criminal court luis moreno-ocampo. >> massive atrocitiies are not commited by evil persons. they are committed by people who say "they are protecting their own communities". >> under his direction, the first permanent international legal body sought justice for some of the most serious atrocities of this century. the icc presented charges