Voting underway in referendum on draft constitution

Kenyan voters turned up in large numbers on Monday to vote in a national referendum that will either endorse or reject a proposed new constitution. The document, if ratified, would replace the country's basic law, which came into force when the East African nation gained independence from Great Britain in 1963. "Generally, voting has progressed smoothly since polling stations opened at 7:00 a.m. (0400 GMT)," Mani Lemaiyan, spokesman for the Electoral Commission of Kenya, told IRIN. Government spokesman Alfred Mutua told reporters shortly after midday that the atmosphere at the polls was calm. "The reports we are getting are that people have turned out in large numbers. So far the elections [referendum] have been very peaceful," he said. Mutua noted, however, that there had been isolated cases of some people not finding their names on the voters' register, a problem he said might have been caused by individuals registering to vote in more than one constituency. Long queues formed at polling stations in Nairobi soon after they opened, and voters waited patiently to cast their ballots. Local broadcasters reported similar scenes around the country in the early hours of the referendum. Acrimony and violence had marred the campaign leading up to the vote. A total of eight people died in two incidents when police opened fire after campaign rallies turned violent. The debate on Kenya's draft constitution has split President Mwai Kibaki's administration. The president and his camp favour the new constitution, but five cabinet ministers have spearheaded a campaign to reject the document in the referendum. They have argued that the draft maintains a presidency with overriding powers. Supporters of the draft constitution have maintained that presidential powers have been significantly curtailed in the proposed basic law. They point out, for example, that under the new document all presidential appointments must be vetted by parliament and the president must share executive power with various constitutional commissions and proposed district governments. Both sides have also differed on the details of the proposed devolution of powers from the national government to the district governments. Results from the referendum vote are expected on Tuesday, but counting of ballots will start at polling stations once voting ends at 5.00 p.m. (1400 GMT).