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Liberia hopes for an end to war
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Elections to End Civil War in Liberia
The citizens of Liberia in West Africa have gone to the polls, hoping that the elections will end over seven years of fighting between the country's numerous warlords.
The BBC correspondent in the capital Monrovia says that voter turnout there was extremely high and that there were very few problems. She says it's more difficult to judge the turnout in the rest of the country, as communication is difficult as a result of the civil war. The first official results are not expected until Sunday.
About 500 international observers were monitoring the elections, which are safeguarded by some 10,000 soldiers of the West African peace keeping force ECOMOG.
The former American president, Jimmy Carter, is one of the monitors. He says he has been assured by all Liberian political parties that they will accept the election results, even if they lose.
There were 13 candidates for the presidency. The man who started the war, Charles Taylor, and a former UN official, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, are considered the frontrunners.
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Taylor aiming for power through the ballot box
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A system of proportional representation means that most of the parties and warring factions have good chances to win seats in the national assembly, even if they should lose the presidency. But there are fears that some of the warlords might take up arms again, if they are not satisfied with the results.
The elections were agreed last August, when leaders of the warring factions signed a peace accord - the 14th attempt to bring peace since the start of the civil war.
The election commission was inaugurated only three months ago, but it has managed to register 751,000 voters. More than 200,000 potential voters are refugees in neighbouring countries, and not eligible to vote.
Liberia was founded in 1847 by freed American slaves. The country's descent into chaos started in April 1980, after a bloody coup by a group of young officers. In December 1989 fighters under the command of Charles Taylor invaded the country, starting the civil war.
A force of West African peace keeping troops has been deployed in Liberia since 1990, but failed to stop the war until last year's peace accord.
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