VISITORS SHOULD TAKE CARE DUE TO TENSION FOLLOWING ELECTIONS

Gabon's interior minister announced on 3 September 2009 that Ali Ben Bongo -- the son of the late President Omar Bongo -- has won the country's presidential election. Bongo reportedly received approximately 42 percent of the vote, while the election's other two main candidates, former interior minister Andre Mba Obame and opposition leader Pierre Mamboundou, received 26 and 25 percent of the vote, respectively. The electoral commission had been expected to release the results on 2 September, but it delayed the announcement due to a disagreement on how to verify provincial votes. Both opposition candidates have rejected the results, calling them a "fraudulent farce." Authorities have already reported disturbances throughout Gabon, which have apparently broken out as a result of the announcement. So far, disturbances have taken place in at least two Libreville districts, as protesters blocked several roads with burning tires and makeshift barricades. Meanwhile, in Port Gentil, several hundred opposition supporters have reportedly set fire to the French Consulate and attacked the city's prison before barricading roads in the city center. Violence, including looting, has also been reported in Nkembo, which is located just east of Libreville. Earlier in the day, anti-riot police officers fired tear gas to disperse opposition supporters who had gathered outside the electoral commission offices in Libreville to demand that officials release the election's results. Meanwhile, Gabon's three mobile phone providers suspended text messaging services on 2 September following an attack on a Go Africa television station in a western Libreville suburb. Reports indicate that unidentified masked gunmen opened fire on the station at approximately 0330 local time. The attack completely shut down the station, which is owned by Obame, but no injuries were reported. The attack came after broadcasts from Obame's other television station, TV Plus, were interrupted on 30 August after Gabon's communications ministry warned the station over broadcasting images of the late President Omar Bongo.