By John Zodzi
LOME, Feb 20 (Reuters) - West African states will provide a multinational force to help police next month's elections in Togo, where violence during a 2005 vote left at least 400 dead.
Tensions are high ahead of the vote, with opposition leaders accusing incumbent President Faure Gnassingbe of planning to rig the outcome.
'We're here for prevention, but we don't expect turmoil,' Colonel Siaka Sangare, head of the Togo mission of the regional body ECOWAS, said during a press conference.
'My greatest wish is that the election takes place in a climate of transparency and calm,' he added.
The mission will include 146 military observers from 13 ECOWAS member states. It will support local security forces, including Togo's specially trained election force numbering roughly 3,000, Colonel Sangare said.
The special election force, supported by the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, has been managing security at campaign rallies which kicked off earlier this month.
In April 2005, the Togolese military killed more than 400 people protesting elections results that allowed Gnassingbe to succeed his late father, who ruled the impoverished nation for more than three decades.
Violence in the world's fourth biggest phosphate producer triggered a refugee crisis in neighbouring Ghana and Benin.
Opposition candidates in the upcoming election have said they are concerned Gnassingbe is using the country's electoral commission as a tool to rig the vote.
Three top rivals -- Jean-Pierre Fabre, Yawovi Agboyibo, and Brigitte Adjamagbo-Johnson -- temporarily pulled out in protest but have since rejoined the campaigning after the electoral commission acceded to one of their demands.
A local human rights official said last week he expected low turnout during the election, but was not expecting violence.
(Editing by Michael Roddy) (For more Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://af.reuters.com/) Keywords: TOGO ELECTION/ECOWAS (Writing by Richard Valdmanis; richard.valdmanis@thomsonreuters.com; Dakar newsroom +221 33 864 5076) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
LOME, Feb 20 (Reuters) - West African states will provide a multinational force to help police next month's elections in Togo, where violence during a 2005 vote left at least 400 dead.
Tensions are high ahead of the vote, with opposition leaders accusing incumbent President Faure Gnassingbe of planning to rig the outcome.
'We're here for prevention, but we don't expect turmoil,' Colonel Siaka Sangare, head of the Togo mission of the regional body ECOWAS, said during a press conference.
'My greatest wish is that the election takes place in a climate of transparency and calm,' he added.
The mission will include 146 military observers from 13 ECOWAS member states. It will support local security forces, including Togo's specially trained election force numbering roughly 3,000, Colonel Sangare said.
The special election force, supported by the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross, has been managing security at campaign rallies which kicked off earlier this month.
In April 2005, the Togolese military killed more than 400 people protesting elections results that allowed Gnassingbe to succeed his late father, who ruled the impoverished nation for more than three decades.
Violence in the world's fourth biggest phosphate producer triggered a refugee crisis in neighbouring Ghana and Benin.
Opposition candidates in the upcoming election have said they are concerned Gnassingbe is using the country's electoral commission as a tool to rig the vote.
Three top rivals -- Jean-Pierre Fabre, Yawovi Agboyibo, and Brigitte Adjamagbo-Johnson -- temporarily pulled out in protest but have since rejoined the campaigning after the electoral commission acceded to one of their demands.
A local human rights official said last week he expected low turnout during the election, but was not expecting violence.
(Editing by Michael Roddy) (For more Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://af.reuters.com/) Keywords: TOGO ELECTION/ECOWAS (Writing by Richard Valdmanis; richard.valdmanis@thomsonreuters.com; Dakar newsroom +221 33 864 5076) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.