Comoros
Comoros exhibits low-range performance across three categories (Representation, Rights and Rule of Law) of the Global State of Democracy’s framework, and it demonstrates mid-level performance in Participation. It is also within the bottom 25 per cent of countries with regard to several factors of Rights, Representation and Rule of Law. Over the last five years, it has experienced no significant improvements. It has, however, suffered declines across multiple factors within Representation, Rights and Rule of Law (in the aggregate). Comoros is a low-income country, with low levels of development. Agriculture accounts for about 50 per cent of GDP. Often known as the “Perfume Islands,” many Comorians rely on the cultivation of ylang-ylang, vanilla, and cloves for their livelihoods.
Comorian history is marked by a diverse array of settlers. Like neighboring Madagascar, it was settled by both Malayo-Indonesian peoples as well as Bantu speakers from the African continent. The influences of Arab and Persian traders brought Islam to the islands. The Christian minority, which accounts for about two per cent of the population, often faces attacks, as anti-Christian sentiments have become increasingly common. Since gaining independence from France in 1975 after nearly a century of colonial rule, the country has frequently struggled with cycles of violence and political unrest, due in large part to inter-island divides. The islands of Anjouan and Mohéli, dissatisfied with the political power and perceived corruption of Grand Comore island, attempted to secede in 1997 and re-establish ties with France. The fourth Comoran island, Mayotte, has remained a French territory.
In 1999, a military coup toppled the government; this was one of more than twenty coups or coup attempts in the late 20th Century, most of which were driven by the animosity between the islands. The Comorian people’s desire for increased stability led to the 2001 Fomboni Accords, which created a complex power-sharing system of governance that sought to give each island significant autonomy and provided for a rotating presidency.
In 2018, President Assoumani saw an opportunity to consolidate his power, as a referendum that was boycotted by the opposition passed overwhelmingly and eliminated the single-term limit and the system of rotating presidency. In the aftermath of this vote, Comoros has seen multiple assassination attempts and government repression of the opposition. At the same time, Comorians continue to struggle with widespread poverty, as chronic underinvestment in healthcare and education places Comoros at the bottom of the Human Capital Index. Together with widespread corruption, these facts have propelled many Comorians to leave for the neighboring French territory of Mayotte, creating a brain drain. In 2019, the archipelagic nation experienced a full democratic breakdown after President Azali Assoumani’s government cracked down on protesters.
Comoros is among the world’s bottom 25 per cent with regard to performance on Gender Equality. The country has an astonishingly highly rate of child brides (30 per cent of girls in Comoros). Furthermore, lack of investigation of and accountability for gender-based violence, and laws criminalizing same sex sexual conducts between adults, are among human rights issues which impact the attainment of gender equality.
Going forward, it will be important to watch all indicators of democratic performance, especially in the aftermath of President Azali Assoumani’s strengthened rule, the frequent marginalization of courts and regular suppression of opposition leaders.
Monthly Event Reports
January 2024 | Azali Assoumani re-elected in presidential election
Comoros held elections for the national presidency and the governors of the three largest islands on 14 January. The Independent National Election Commission (Commission Electoral National Independante, CENI) reported that the incumbent president Azali Assoumani won re-election in the first round, receiving 62.97 per cent of the valid votes. CENI reported presidential election turnout to be 16.30 per cent, while turnout in the gubernatorial elections varied between 39.13 per cent and 69.56 per cent. There were six candidates for president, all of whom are men. There was only one woman among the 26 candidates for governor: Chamina Ben Mohamed who won the governorship of Mohéli. A joint election observation mission from the African Union and Eastern African Standby Force noted political tensions during the early part of the electoral process but described elections as taking place in a peaceful atmosphere, and found few logistical or procedural problems in the management of the election. Opposition candidates’ legal challenges to the election were dismissed by the Supreme Court. The Court released revised figures for the election, finding that President Assoumani received 57.2 per cent of the votes, with turnout much higher than reported by the CENI at 56 per cent. This would be slightly up from the last presidential election in 2019 which had 53 per cent turnout.
November 2022 | Former President Sambi convicted of ‘high treason’
On 28 November Comoros’ State Security Court sentenced the country’s former President, Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi, to life in prison, after convicting him of ‘high treason’ for his role in a corrupt passport sale scheme. The scheme, which was purportedly established to fund development in Comoros, was found by a parliamentary commission to be illegal and its revenues to have been embezzled. The commission suspected Sambi and his successor, former President Lkiliou Dhoinine, to be responsible for the embezzlement. According to the prosecution, Sambi embezzled $1.8 billion (USD). Official corruption convictions are rare in Comoros, and some, including the human rights NGO Alkarama, have suggested that there was political interference in the legal proceedings brought against Sambi, who is a political rival of serving President Azali Assoumani. Such concerns make it difficult to determine whether Sambi’s conviction signals improved accountability for official corruption in Comoros or a deterioration in judicial independence and access to justice.
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GSoD Indices Data 2013-2022
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Factors of Democratic Performance Over Time
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