7 Nov 2012

US ELECTION / REAX

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was joined today (7 November) by citizens around the world in presenting newly re-elected United States President Barack Obama with a list of concerns they hope he will now tackle. UNTV / UNAMA / MONUSCO

Posted at: November 7, 2012 6:32 pm

Duration: 04:00

Available in: SD

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STORY: US ELECTION / REAX
TRT: 4.00
SOURCE: UNTV / MONUSCO / UNAMA
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / SWAHILI / FRENCH / DARI / NATS

DATELINE: 7 NOVEMBER 2012, NEW YORK CITY, UNITED STATES / GOMA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO / KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

SHOTLIST:

RECENT – 2011, NEW YORK CITY

1. Wide shot, United Nations headquarters

7 NOVEMBER 2012, NEW YORK CITY

2. Wide shot, press conference
3. Med shot, journalist
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Martin Nesirky, Spokesman for the United Nations Secretary-General:
"The role of the United States is indispensable, so the Secretary-General is certainly looking to the United States to continue the active engagement that there has already been."

7 NOVEMBER 2012, GOMA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

1. Med shot, group of men standing by their motorcycles in the streets of Goma
2. VOX-POP (French) Man:
"We ask him as an African American not to ignore us Congolese people, we're suffering a lot."
3. VOX-POP (Swahili) Young Boy:
"He should work with our president to give us peace. Peace is very important"
4. VOX-POP (Swahili) Man:
"Obama now has a new mandate and he must ensure that wars end in Africa. Especially here in eastern Congo where militias are roaming everywhere."
5. Med shot, group of men in the streets of Goma

FILE – UNAMA – JULY 2012, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

6. Wide shot, city traffic

7 NOVEMBER 2012, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

7. VOX-POP (Dari) Hasibullah Habibi, Student at the American University of Kabul:
"Under the Bush administration military spending was very high.  I think Obama is better for Afghanistan but also Republicans tried to help Afghans to become independent.  On the foreign affairs issues, another change I think we will see will be more support to Palestinians by Democrats compared to the previous (Bush) administration, which showed very strong support to Israel.  Another effect I think we will see will be increased attention on Afghanistan more than Pakistan – for instance with the drone attacks in Waziristan, which if effective, can have a positive impact on the fight of terrorism in the region."
8. VOX-POP (Dari) Samir, Employee at Flag International in Kabul:
"I think it's a good thing that Obama was elected President over Romney for Afghanistan in particular, as well as for other parts of the world because of the work he has already done over the last four years in Afghanistan. His experience in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East which improved in Afghanistan in general gave him more experience to be president than Romney."
9. VOX-POP (Dari) Sediq Zaliq, Journalist:
"I think Obama's victory over Romney will bring good progress for both domestic and foreign policy of the US because the security and defence polices that Obama has practiced over the last four years, perhaps not completely, but overall have been effective.  Particularly given he had to deal with the challenges, in terms of war and insecurity created by the policies of the previous (Bush) administration across the world."

FILE – UNAMA – JULY 2012, KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

10. Wide shot, city traffic

STORYLINE:

In a statement issued overnight, Ban "warmly" congratulated Obama on his re-election, and said he looked forward to continuing to work with him on the challenges lying ahead: "from ending the bloodshed in Syria, to getting the Middle East peace process back on track, to promoting sustainable development and tackling the challenges posed by climate change".

He said all of these challenges would require strong multilateral cooperation, and Ban's spokesperson Martin Nesirky told reporters at UN headquarters today that the role of the United States was "indispensable".

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)'s restive eastern region, people talked about their hopes and expectations for Obama's second term.

Several said they wanted the US president, especially in view of his own African roots, to help Africa end wars and return to peace.

Some felt he should visit Africa and particularly the eastern DRC, where the UN said this week the humanitarian needs were "monumental" in view of conflict and atrocities against civilians that have displaced more than two million people.

In Afghanistan, some people said they thought Obama's experience and work over the past four years made him better placed to deal with Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East, and that his policies over the past four years "perhaps not completely, but overall have been effective."

One man said he thought the "very high" military spending under the Bush administration had been a "good thing" for Afghanistan, and he expected that now to be reduced. And he expected "increased attention on Afghanistan and Pakistan – for instance with the drone attacks in Waziristan, which if effective, can have a positive impact on terrorism in the region."

According to media reports, while some results have yet to be finalized, President Obama defeated his opponent, Mitt Romney, with 303 electoral college votes compared to Mr. Romney's 206 electoral college votes. Under the US presidential voting system, a candidate needs to secure at least 270 electoral college votes to secure victory.