Benin since the April 28 election - Talon continues to crack down on the opposition
I spent 2 1/2 years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin, in 1995-97, which included their 2nd democratic election, which was the 2nd election in which a challenger defeated the incumbent (in 1991 challenger Nicephore Soglo defeated incumbent Mathieu Kerekou, and in 1996, challenger Mathieu Kerekou defeated incumbent Nicephore Soglo) - so Benin is special to me, and I've always felt pride in their against-the-odds democratic quality. The April 28 election was a betrayal of Benin's democracy. All opposition parties were disqualified; only two parties were allowed to compete, and both of those parties supported the president. This system reminds me of the National Front for the Defense of the Revolution in Madagascar's Second Republic - there were six parties in legislative elections, but in order to qualify, each party had to be loyal to the president and his policies. What's happened since then? The NY Times reports that former president Boni Yayi was under "