NABLUS, 3 December 2005 — The ruling Fatah party called off primary voting in two large West Bank towns yesterday after gunmen fired into the air and burned ballot boxes, in the latest setback for Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ahead of January parliamentary elections.
Fatah’s staggered primary voting has been plagued by violence and confusion in recent weeks, leaving the party in disarray as it gears up for a stiff challenge from Hamas in the January vote.
Fatah officials said voting was canceled in the towns of Salfit and Qalqiliya due to the violence and disputes over voter eligibility.
In Salfit, militants burned at least one ballot box and fired bullets into the air to scare residents away from the polls, officials said.
“There’s a decision not to continue the elections in Salfit,” said Akram Abu Issa, a local security officer. He said the problem had been caused when some Fatah candidates tried to bring non-party members to vote. Rival candidates complained that the voters weren’t eligible, he said.
Fatah officials in Qalqiliya also canceled voting due to disputes between residents and candidates in surrounding villages. Each group fears that voting procedures could favor the other.
Despite the cancelation, some people continued to vote in Salfit, even though officials said the results would not be valid. Voting also continued without incident in several surrounding villages, as well as the city of Hebron.
Fatah has been holding primaries for the first time under pressure from the party’s younger generation, which wants more transparent operations in the Palestinian Authority’s corruption-tainted ruling party.
The primaries are to select a pool of candidates, though Abbas retains final say over who will represent the party in the parliamentary vote. Hamas has been campaigning on a platform of clean government, and analysts say the confusion in the Fatah primaries is likely to bolster the Islamic group.
A first round of West Bank balloting last week proceeded without incident, sweeping aside old-timers and handing victories to a raft of young-guard candidates. But primaries in Gaza were canceled and results nullified after gunmen alleging irregularities attacked polling stations.
Voting in Jerusalem was marred by confusing announcements from Fatah officials over whether it would proceed. It also was hindered because voters had to travel to West Bank suburbs of Jerusalem to avoid a confrontation with Israel over sovereignty issues.
Earlier this week, results in the Gaza Strip were nullified after gunmen attacked polling stations. Officials have said the voting will not be rescheduled.
The confusion is likely to mean that Abbas will play a bigger role in selecting the final list of candidates.
In the Hebron area, around 50,000 Fatah loyalists are eligible to elect 18 out of 103 candidates to stand for the party in the Jan. 25 election - only the second ever parliamentary vote in the Palestinian territories.
“It is a difficult process because the names of some of the voters are not in the register,” said one Fatah official on condition of anonymity.
The leading candidates in the area are Abbas’ security adviser, Jibril Rajoub, and former Information Minister Nabil Amir.
The registration of candidates is due to begin on Dec. 3 and close on Dec. 14, while the actual election campaign will start on Jan. 3.
