we knew what we need to do but can feel no moving forward looking at when you when you start it back into 60 reproduceable between she loves no reporters even things like 1500 loaves a day so now what are we doing here we can do in the proposal which we have $2000000.00 people around here so we need this piece whereby we need to fix the debt going to stay here within the tone she so we can call here to day to day to day and so preach all the people. i. color again the headlines on al-jazeera the u.s. house of representatives has backed a 3 fold increase in direct pandemic relief checks to $2000.00 it will need a 2 thirds majority in the senate to pass and the house has also overturned trump's veto of the annual defense spending bill roslyn jordan is in washington d.c. with more calls were voted for this spending measure to fund the military through

tobar 1st 2021 the president objected to the legislation for a number of reasons and decide and voted it and vetoed it now what is happening is republicans and democrats are joining together to what basically push back trumps veto and that means that assuming the senate does the same thing as early as on tuesday this funding bill will be calm law. well president elect joe biden has hit out again over the lack of information his transition team is getting from the trumpet ministration biden warn that he's still being obstructed on national security issues and that key agencies have been severely damaged by trump's policies a saudi court has sentenced a prominent women's rights activists in more than 5 and a half years in prison drawing international condemnation and have a new and has been held since 2018 after being arrested along with least a dozen other activists at least 3 friends soldiers have been killed in mali their

armored vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb in the small town of homs bori in the mopti region the troops are part of france's operation fighting armed groups u.n. observers in the central african republic say voting in sunday's general election was largely smooth and turnout was strong despite 14 percent of polling stations being unable to operate after being attacked by armed rebels president to whether a is hoping to win a 2nd term but has accused his predecessor of planning a coup the governments of bangladesh has started relocating a 2nd group of rohingya refugees who fled there for me and maher around $1500.00 refugees are being moved from their camps in cox's bazar to an island in the bay of bengal that's prone to flooding those are the headlines on al jazeera more news coming up right after inside story thanks for watching but bye for now.

54 countries in africa but how many can be described as democratic there have been a number of elections this year but also protests violence and leaders changing the law to stay in power so how do you define democracy in africa this is inside story . hello and welcome to the program. at least 16 african nations have held elections this year but there have been almost as many debates as to whether democracy is actually disappearing across the continent a number of leaders continue to hold an iron grip on power many are accused of

repressing the opposition and amending laws to extend their rule on sunday the people of central african republic turned out in large numbers for a vote seen as a crucial test in a country that suffered years of instability there were reports of armed groups shooting in the air to intimidate voters in one central town but the united nations said the process was largely peaceful president fost on archons to adama is seeking a 2nd term but he's been accused of vote rigging. i have he had to vote for peace i have had a blood problems is not the bottom of the country but i had to do my beat go and i was born in this country but i feel i have been marginalized as a muslim was the point of latina again on the same day about 7 and a half 1000000 people cast their ballots in the sad state of these year in an election that could lead to the country's 1st peaceful transfer of power between 2 democratically elected presidents president muhammad who is a fool is stepping down after reaching the limit of 25 year terms pulling off

a peaceful poll will be seen as a success in a country blighted by poverty and one that's also fighting armed movements in the areas in the southwest and southeast it again. equally was what we prayed to allah to choose for us the president who has the most mercy for the people a president who will not betray the country and who will not betray the trust of the people that is our wish it is also our wish to allaah may help to make the poor the peasants the breeders happy earlier this month on his president nonna a coup for a one a 2nd term in a vote which has been overshadowed by post-election violence at least 5 people have been killed former president and main opposition candidate john muhammad accused the incumbent of trying to rig the election ivory coast president al assad what to push to change the constitution and run for a 3rd term despite an opposition boycott the election was marred by intimidation violence and electoral malpractise observers reported the 23 percent of polling

stations did not open at all due to threats or attacks in guinea alpha condé is decision to also run for a 3rd term sparked protests that were met by a crackdown by security forces condé want almost 60 percent of the vote but his opponent said the election was rigged and that condi violated the constitution by running again dozens of people have since been killed in anti-government demonstrations. and in ethiopia's northern region of to great tensions escalated after leaders of to grace people liberation front held regional elections defying a federal government ban prime minister ahmed announced a military offensive after accusing to grand forces of attacking and seizing a military base in the regional capital mccully a charge they deny the recent violence forced thousands of ethiopians to escape into neighboring sudan. alright let's bring in our guests in pretoria we have so much any honorary visiting professor at the university of south africa agnes gitau is managing partner at advisory firm stay.

where she focuses on political and economic risks associated with sub-saharan africa she joins us from london. and also from the u.k. and luton is quesne an ng director of the faculty of academic affairs and research at the coffee and an international peacekeeping training center he specializes in west african states and the sahara region welcome to each of you some of don't let me start with you today from your vantage point what is the state of democracy on the continent on that condon and out simply say you do have a mixed picture some countries are showing stuff village see it regulate less since but some countries are beginning to have even 10 out of the civil strives and at times the kind of tension that is threatening the very progress that has been made since the early ninety's ninety's you are seeing violence in our veins then says

and what we think is beginning to happen and be exposed 'd is the fed that overall concentration on elections instead of looking at the fundamental deep structural issues is not a substantive but a way of deepening democracy because 'd you are beginning to see the underlying you know deep structural whether it's quite of the cases where there is the struggle for resources which sometimes is weaponized through regional aid and it is and others saw the struggling economy is generally all of those and corruption of course all of those even if you had a democracy it begin to have legitimacy crisis if you cannot you leave on the middle east and create you probably do need and you have rob and for all of

the. democrats quae see earlier this year freedom house said that the region that showed the fastest decline in political rights and civil liberties in 2009. 900 was west africa which had long been a driver of democratic gains what are the reasons that democratic progress has backslidden there when i think i mean multiple reasons and i do agree very much so with the previous speaker one is the resurgence of one our 10 must do police 2 strong political parties that are what i started to meddle in the way that is true she's functioned dish ery it media even did that just leach hat but we're also seeing more to credit forms of of you know. re genies in which you know

a certain lack of patience for inclusive politics. exclusive in a policy way it's young people primarily and i think at a point in time a who we can come to the demographics feel as if you know they are how to be debate more disturbing. is the fanciful dressing around as god listening is to to she's a witch regime some effect really interested in the independence the resources and affection of these 2 she's so about terror. the optimism and the hope of the 1990 s. about a resurgence of democratic institutions and democratic processes plus a certain democratic debate it out beginning to go our way pleased by for us to see increasing demonstrations and a dissonance between an increasingly dire and too cryptic elite pilots act last or

don't understand the language of the youth and it is this disconnect that i think we should begin trying to stand and come to grips with i know as i think that next decade it would be very difficult for the court meant as agnes i want to take a step back for a moment shift from big picture and look more at one specific case study the election in tanzania in late october it was marred by allegations of arrests of candidates of arrests of protesters restrictions on representatives of political parties having access to polling stations critics of president michel fully accuse him of stifling dissent in his 1st 5 years in office election experts say that democracy is experiencing you know really dire consequences there right now how bad exactly is it in tanzania we talk about democracy and actually can and sometimes that when you know we can't get the greedy we're going to continue the

western style did not follow democracy we're clock going tonight and thank you for that press you don't count me out yet don't you want to do an economy of which shakespeare me it is not part of each topic and you know if you look at election nobody is we've no cio in. every day in the rest of the country surrounding tanzania. just in october what we saw was suddenly moved people countries ahead sort of sort of. peaceful elections peaceful transition from one government government to be another that is certainly changing and echoing what everybody else say that the fundamental question even can this really work to collections and lessons really the solution for the challenges the continent faces and we speak of broken about the challenges or income inequality for which even rising youth unemployment and when we hold these that

election puppet what application template every day every tactical outcome pay is going to provide you know this is very important needs that african. care education infrastructure but to day in day out we are seeing sort of movements from you know from the ninety's where we so democratic process is taking shape in the continent and i think don't we owe getting tired and really at the time of come for us is that questioning will work for us does it does it look i work in a section where we just try to support investment into the region and in the last impressions were very careful not with the money where political stability was in principle but now as you've seen in terms of the year. and investors are putting money they don't care really about democratic process of do not care about peaceful

action they care about returns so you know i think for us enough because we need to go back to the drawing board and see what works for us how can we are more development at the same time promote political stability and then again the fundamental question is. not tricking although you know i'm not a democracy or process it is informed by our bodies we don't copy and pasting what doesn't work to europe and thinking that he's going to walk for some of those are very heads of states in africa that are positioning themselves as defenders of democratic governance and democratic norms right now i mean at a time when democracy is backsliding in a lot of countries are there leaders that are on the stage there that are saying no we have to defend the democracies that we have fought so hard for what you do not have the same heart of leaders that you saw in the sixty's where you had strong

leadership and vision opposed to the continent or the country is what you i have it now it's mainly that 5 yet 10 mine to judge the other presidents or do not have a vision beyond the best day in office because there professionalized politics and most of the time you do not have people or leaders or alley or make a tell you in a couple of cause most of them do speak their language that is expected to be spoken 'd to say we are defending democracy we won 3 and fail lessons but there have sins and their pronouncements very often and a variance is more about $46.00 of survival is mob of politics of the true nature and sort of based in that rather than a vision for the continent of where the country is they lead. let me ask you about

the elections in the share that were held on sunday because there you saw unlike other west african leaders you saw a president is so full he didn't try to change the constitution and stay in power he stepped aside at the end of his 2nd term how significant is that who would have been on the surface and indeed tear him it looks very significant. bethink the real test of that significance is whether the incoming got meant it's able to transcend beyond the narrow confines of their money g. reallocated car presidential politics that has been there been of. african countries that's number one number 2 release to the extent to which this incoming government is capable of transforming their narrative and their discourses around those who are threatening with the force of arms to sort out balance the

ability of the shit now. hugging in the background will still be that military strong in true seems decisive force that is simpler than titians when it hits the i gender it's called upon to come in to get it you were for that so when so my daughter talks about money jiri outfit in or president i did that is truly very generous of these address kid to come out presidents. could be a recess interest and not understand the broadcasts dynamics of these countries that the hobby be creates and it is that disconnect in their rhetorical flourishes around democracies with tao deeply in debt structure underpinnings of this process that is leading to this sense of dismay on

a frustration and then there by the merry chiefs of extremism and of this is a west africa white challenge and of course is the film's decision not to continue and he's been the purpose from tight is encouraging but i think we need to come around whoever is to get that power and to see things change it cannot and must not be politics as usual otherwise we will see that military come in but. agnes we've heard a lot this past year of crackdowns on dissent happening in various countries when it's time for elections to come up come of come around when there's campaigning going on how much work crackdowns on dissent on the rise in these various elections and 2020 a lot of the wheatley so actually the fact that the western economy well very much focused all of the national issues endemic issues of drek seat at.

politique so what happens to a lot of lockin leigh. they took advantage of the fact that the west will no longer telling us what to do all if they were going to not really let me so they took advantage of that and because africa especially led by the youth realizing that we had not ready to look up to the went to the street and started to demanding demanding accountability for get me to be so you know resisted and we so obviously to what the end of days you know we saw a major area and a lot of the places where we've seen young people women really going out and in minding accountability from government report and most of these. politicians are crackdown particularly on access to internet you know just cracking down on anybody who spoke against their own who had different views to so it was the not abetting various branches but i think that they hoped for

a black. africans really realizing that if anything is going to happen if you're going to see that change you're going to see the kind of development and opportunities for every when i think it will come from africa excel and not really as we have in the past depended on the big donors from the west but yes somebody taking advantage of internet all of history issues using terrorism if you spoke against a government which seemed activists being held on terrorism issues all the expert to security just really using very various excuses to try and crack down on anybody who was against the use o. against their dad bug politics but but you know they still that young people are rising from one end of africa to the rest and saying look. and how can we think progress is how can we manage that and how can we move based active activism

that you see not months. in young people and make that to move back to what leadership and democracy are committed some of that by and large how would you say citizens of many african countries view elections these days and do they view it as a tool to build effective democratic institutions or as a tool for those already 'd in power to just stay in power they ease a serious legitimacy crisis in our political 'd class and the political system at large but so are you find that small groups of people up by just bait in and they use very much dislocated from that particular process precisely because demographic dividends that might police have been talking a boat have not been forthcoming but to truly feel that you have because when you talk of most of these economy challenges social challenges political challenges

challenges of employment they mainly target the youths even when you talk of violent crime corruption or even diseases they mainly are you so there is that faces the hands there is the need to really get my action and african state by building a couple of leadership. of the state as well as the opposite to see to the poor to some degree must do it off in the lions rather than dependence on state. quesne for the countries that have held elections in 2020 how difficult has it been for the opposition in those countries to participate. well let me focus on just a couple of that i mean guinea malony. book enough and. probably before i start about the difficulties that position has faced let me

respond to i do nessus good points about the crackdown look that crowd down was indeed in these countries that i have met have been consistent they've been massive but if you take guinea and you where for example all the institutions were meddled with and changed and these presidents who are look to run for the elections don't truly warrant they have not been able to destroy and bend that spirit of optimism and resistance that we are seeing a multi-use and result when the indonesians have to take place you know greece is not for come let's since i've always been nationalist celebrations of victory over the arts in these 2 cases that in the wishes were held within the

presidential palaces these geron took rats frightened of the masses out there seeing you cannot and we will not allow you to steal our vote not closely related to this drew in demand by the populace but to clearly be used and and captured by petition patties. it has been death threats to changing laws about when it exists party funding access to media the use of the military or the uniform forces you know. the destruction of businesses cutting off the internet you know all kinds of data tricks i'd be against opposition the end result is that although we are holding elections and i think i like the points made by my colleagues that probably we need to look at elections only concrete to deepening democracy so we have election money test election observers who can mean what the

template does as oa but we've seen one opposition leader talking on the radio talking on television that's an opposition newspaper and therefore the playing field is fairly level that's not true we are seeing opposition parties think to struggle for the barrister by about just to get a voice. nevertheless the little space that they have to send a message out those messages have resumed it had crossed the continent and you know these countries so though incumbent parties are consistently warm we ask seeing opposition parties and voting patterns beginning to send a clear message that says we will not accept politics as usual in which a tiny elite horribly corrupt running

a family and friends type of government continue to loot their resources. that must be used for the benefit of the generality of the populace so i don't foresee a change coming. taste and that change for me is question and what's in politics in democracy shall be called alternative. it's much more violent so shout spread. i'm starting in are starting up or where we're starting to run out of time we only have a little over a minute left and i just want to try to get out of this in here to give a last point agnes i saw you nodding along to a lot of what was saying so i wanted to see if you wanted to add anything and also to see from your perspective if you felt that there were any bright spots out there reasons for hope going forward thank you to her and question you have to let me write i think elections in my view unnecessary expense save and we spend a lot of money you know holding a elections and which the outcome most people have disputed so why should greet the

elections instead and why should we focus and we know of the challenges that the continent faces challenges of infrastructure and devastate the health care system that have been disrupted but the pandemic why do we continue to do it before the action either after a year and what happens with death and destruction it can all make you believe. we need to find a solution and yet in bins in brussels but he doesn't speak all the african continent the show for example and cut what do you countries that have shown it can work but did about beauty 5 countries in the in in the continent and clearly we in 2020 we see. democracy will result these challenges yet it hasn't so going forward what works for the continent not necessarily cannot

but i'm so sorry to interrupt you but we have run out of time so we're going to have to end the conversation there thank you so much to all of our guests some of those i think any agnes gitau and adding. and thank you too for watching you can see the program again any time by visiting our website al-jazeera dot com and for further discussion go to our facebook page that's facebook dot com forward slash a.j. inside story you can also join the conversation on twitter our handle is at a.j. inside story for me mohammed gentlemen the whole team here bye for now.

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south africa toxic city on al-jazeera. this is al jazeera i'm dating obligato with a check on your world headlines the u.s. house of representatives has backed a 3 fold increase in direct pandemic relief checks to $2000.00 it will need a 2 thirds majority in the senate to pass in the house has also overturned trump's veto of the annual defense spending bill roslyn jordan is in washington d.c. with more calls voted for this spending measure to fund the military.