JF 'IN' with 86%

Former MNA Jean-Francois Ferari has eased to victory in the Mont Fleuri by-election with a 529 majority and 86% of the vote.

He quit as an MP in June over the Speaker’s refusal to allow him to speak on the Public Officers’ Ethics Bill.

The SNP MP said voters had delivered a "clear message to the government about their representatives’ right to speak".

The turnout was 26%, with the Democratic Party coming second with only 83 votes. The ruling SPPF party did not stand.

Mr Ferrari said he would return to the National Assembly on Monday with a mandate “to fight for the freedom of speech and to protect the voters’ right to be heard”.

Election Day

The ruling SPPF party placed a few of its activists around the district to intimidate and scare the residents from going to vote.















Sharing a joke with the SPPF proportionally elected MNA, Clifford Andre who conveniently chose to tour Mont Fleuri on that day yet choosing not to exercise his right to vote.

Party activists and supporters gathered at Arpent Vert for a well deserved victory celebration.

Public meeting at Corgate Estate

SNP organised its third and last public meeting for the Mont Fleuri by election at Corgate Estate this sunday. Victory was definitely felt and assured after weeks of campaigning.

An undivided strong public show of support from the SNP Executive Committee.

Without fear or favour: a strong police presence was felt.

The usual strong public support was guaranteed.

Public Meeting at Foret Noire

The SNP organised its second public meeting leading up to the Mont Fleuri by election on Saturday 12^th July at Foret Noire. It was the first time the party has organise such event in this previously SPPF controlled area.

Titis a fervent supporter of Jean Francois Ferrari and the SNP had the honour to launch the meeting.

Like its now the case a large crowd gathered without fear of intimidation, exercising their right to assemble freely and to belong to political parties as guaranteed by the constitution.

Three generations of SNP supporters.

The party leader Wavel Ramkalawan spoke about what makes Jean Francois Ferrari a political class above his opponent.

Why is 5th June no longer relevant?

Once again this year the Seychellois public was made to stay home, whilst the SPPF went down town to lay wreaths at the ‘Zonm Lib’ monument in honour of the 5th June 1977 coup d’etat. Although the word is not too openly uttered here, that was very much what happened 30 years ago.

What followed the sham ‘Liberation Day’ was seventeen years of a one-party communist state regime which suppressed all civil liberties, guaranteed by the very constitution the illegitimate armed gang violated on that faithful day.

Today, the SPPF propaganda is still very much a live and the need for the opposition to challenge the official version on the event is even more pressing. The national daily – The Seychelles Nation describes the event as:

“the 30th anniversary of when a group of fearless Seychellois changed the course of this country for the better, forever.

This group of Seychellois made the dreams of the people their pre-occupation when they lit the flame of the country’s liberation which led to extraordinary development and progress.”

But what about the period of oppression, when political dissidents were persecuted and hundreds were forced into exiled? What about the others who were jailed and tortured? What about the time our nation’s civil liberties and freedom of expression were done away with? What about the time, we’ve failed to stop injustices, poor ethics, nepotism and political victimisation to become the norm of the day?

Hence it is no wonder that three decades on the feelings of resentment are still around and reconciliation is a long way off for many people. So is it still legitimate for the ruling party to keep on adding salt to the injury every year? The saddest part is that we will never know if our country would have been better off, in terms of education, health and housing and social infrastructure had the day which divided our small nation never occurred.

I find it especially more unacceptable to celebrate the event this year and to involve the army in it, since the national theme revolves around the sanctity of our constitution. It is time for the Seychellois nation to move forward and do away with this controversial and unpopular day of our history.

Now that we’ve adopted a new constitution and had embarked in a profound process of change for peace and democracy, with a hopeful future and respect of our true Creole identity, without consideration of religion, origin, political belief or social status, I strongly believe the 5^th June celebration is no longer relevant in the new Seychelles.

A Resounding Vote of Confidence

SNP wishes to thank all its supporters for their brave support shown at the rally ‘against the rising cost of living’ on Sunday 25^th May. This first public rally for the year, was an opportunity to protest at the difficult situation that the people of Seychelles are facing today.

Indeed it was a resounding vote of confidence for the SNP leadership. Even the ‘baddies’ are privately admitting that the SNP is well focused and has positioned itself as the major political force locally, with the street behind it.

I was amongst the party officials who addressed the crowd, primarily as the MC. This was an opportune moment to remind the crowd about how the SPPF is using the SBC to mount barrage of propaganda to pretend that the government is actually taking decisive actions to tackle the rising cost of living.

United we’ll win: the people of Seychelles should realize that two years on after the Presidential election and one year after electing a ‘soit disant’ serious Assembly, the SPPF is not living up to its election promises. Instead of bringing prosperity to the people of Seychelles, I see misery in many homes I visited at district level. So this is the time to renew your support for the SNP and to help bring the change that Seychelles needs to make in order to build a country that would respond to the aspirations of all Seychellois.

Believe in yourself: SNP as a party which aspires to be the next government will continue to come up with initiatives to bring about the changes Seychelles needs. However, a political party cannot achieve this all alone. Every one of us should take our responsibility seriously and participate in the political process. Standing aloof with your arms crossed will not bring about the change you want to see. A people should never be afraid of the government! So stand up and be counted, today.

One year on: how ‘serye’ is the Jj Spirit and his Assembly?

This month marks exactly a year since the SPPF Assembly team won the majority seats in the legislative elections, as a serious team, willing to wake Seychelles from its siesta, and push through long delayed yet vital economic, social, and political reforms.

But now, twelve months after being elected, the team President Michel described as his ‘lasanble serye’ has turned out to be a mere docile group of politicians. Whilst the SNP had brought about a series of propositions to reduce the cost of living, call for more support for the farming community and to gear up the fight against drug, the SPPF had been nothing but a voiceless power in bringing about change.

Part of the problem is the huge expectations the SPPF created, through their heavily state subsidised election campaign. Riding on the phrase ‘kapab, konpetan e kosto,’ Mr Michel and his MNAs spoke to the voters in a ‘soit disant’ renewed commitment, as if they were not part of ex-president Rene’s 27 year reign.

Whilst the people initially appreciated Michel’s efforts to bring the militaristic, aloof Seychelles presidency closer to the people, his Assembly team remains disconnected and lacks the ability to provide him with solutions for our deepening economic crisis.

To date President Michel has been more concerned with his over exposure in the media and giving more time to projects with no immediate results, such as the Seychelles University, the sea level rise foundation and the ‘Jj Spirit Foundation.’ Critics charge that Michel has so far failed to clearly explain where he wants to lead the country, to provide a roadmap. Instead, he’s been promoting Strategy 2017, with no clear explanation for the average Seychellois to make sense of the proposals.

Michel is most sharply criticized, however, for his handling of the economy. Elected in large part on the slogan of creating more prosperity for the people, he promised to restore the purchasing power of the Seychellois workers. His failure to do so is strongly resented by his supporters, who are having a hard time making ends, meet. For his part, Michel blames the international economic crisis - the high fuel prices and other raw materials, and the global food crisis – for our economic woes. In the meantime, the Seychellois people are judging the president by his actions.

Enough pleasing words

For years now the media has reported on alleged human rights abuses by the police. As a journalist I have seen for myself the victims of beatings and torture that have been reported on numerous occasions. What I have seen and heard sometimes make me fear for the future of Seychelles.

So last week I breathed a breath of fresh air when I heard that the European Union and the United Nations Development Programme, were co-sponsoring a programme aimed at increasing the ability of police and prison officers to respect and adopt human rights practices. Human rights cannot be discussed without bringing up the police, since they are the protectors of those rights enshrined in our Constitution.

This year the world is also marking the 60th anniversary of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights with the theme: Dignity and justice for all. 15 years on after the adoption of the new constitution, our police force need a “re-education” process with regards to human rights issues. A lot of people may think that as an opposition MP, I'm simply trying to win political mileage and criticizing the police in an unjustifiable manner. Yet to date it has been a terrible situation out there.

The time has now come, as the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Patrick Pillay rightly put it “for Seychelles to take the steps to ensure the declaration is not just pleasing words on paper but a living reality for everyone.”

For years the public have suspected a well-orchestrated move to frighten and silence them, through human rights abuses that involve the intelligence services and state institutions.

Minister Pillay admitted that “sadly, many Seychellois have been subjected to violations of their fundamental rights.” It is going to be a difficult job trying to rebuild the public’s confidence in the police force, but people would rather start now. So let us get on with the job.

We must seize the moment and work together to uphold the Declaration of Human Rights and the Charter of Human Rights enshrined in our Constitution. Human rights is a sign of good governance. I see the European Union's involvement as a sign that it is placing the issue as a priority in the cooperation it shares with Seychelles. So let us not miss this opportunity.