Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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April 20, 2008

Ethiopians Vote Amid Opposition Boycott 
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1BF5267:A6F02AD83191E160E494386FED4D0425B3350E090FE6A6E8& 
Ruling EPRDF party denied allegations by opposition leaders that most of their candidates were disqualified from running 






Voting in Addis Ababa (File)Ethiopians vote Sunday in a second round of elections for local government positions, despite an opposition boycott and criticism from a prominent international human rights group. 

The first round of voting was last Sunday. 

Opposition leaders claim that most of their candidates were disqualified from running or intimidated into dropping out. 

The ruling EPRDF party has denied those allegations, saying the electoral board registered every candidate who had the proper credentials. 

The rights group Human Rights Watch agrees with the opposition's view, calling the elections "a rubber stamp" for the ruling party's domination of power. 

Approximately four million seats in parliament, city councils and neighborhood councils are at stake in the elections. 

Ethiopia has 26 million registered voters. 

Some information for this report was provided by AP.



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