29/06/2023 (Agence Europe) – The European Union welcomed, on Thursday 29 June, the peaceful conduct of the general elections in Sierra Leone held on 24 June (see EUROPE 13175/36), while calling for the results to be transparent. “The Sierra Leone people demonstrated their strong commitment to democracy”, stressed the European External Action Service in a press release, speaking of “a largely peaceful and calm atmosphere in a highly polarised political environment “. The incumbent president, Julius Maada Bio, was declared the winner on Tuesday, but the opposition is contesting the vote count. The EU Election Observation Mission is calling on the Electoral Commission “to promptly publish disaggregated results data per polling station, which would defuse tensions and provide for a possibility of public scrutiny of the results and ensure transparency and certainty”. The EU encourages all disputes to be resolved by legal means. (AN)