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Parliamentary elections were held in Tonga on 23 and 24 April 2008 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly.〔(Electoral Calendar- world elections,US elections,presidential election,world parties )〕 The nobles were elected on 23 April, and the nine people's representatives on 24 April.〔(Tonga to hold general elections in April - People's Daily Online )〕 A total of 32,000 people turned out to vote, giving a turnout of 48%.〔("48% turnout for 2008 General Election" ), ''Matangi Tonga'', 28 April 2008〕 71 candidates had filed for the people's representatives' seats, among them eight women. All nine incumbents stood for reelection, with six retaining their seats.〔(Tonga to hold general election on 24 April - People's Daily Online )〕 Most of the pro-democracy MPs were returned, despite several facing charges of sedition over the 2006 Nuku'alofa riots〔(Pro-democracy MPs mostly returned in Tonga - Radio New Zealand ), 25 April 2008〕 Reportedly, all nine elected MPs were pro-democracy activists. These elections were the last ones before democratic reforms expected to be implemented in 2010, which would change the seat balance as follows: 17 MPs would be popularly elected, nine MPs would be elected by the nobles and four MPs appointed by the king.〔(Tonga heads to polls, but more slowly toward greater democracy )〕 Viliami Uasike Latu requested a recount in Vava'u, the constituency he contested, as he missed out on the second seat there by only 51 votes; the recount was conducted from 5 to 9 May at the Office of the Governor of Vava’u. Latu lose the recount on 14 May after an increase to the other candidate, Samiu Kuita Vaipulu from 1,896 votes to 1,902 votes while Latu received a very narrow decrease of two votes from the original 1,845 votes to 1,843 votes.〔(Election recount confirms original results )〕 ==Controversy== About two weeks before the election, it was announced that the Tonga Broadcasting Commission would henceforth censor candidates' political broadcasts,〔("TBC's censorship committee makes its mark on coming election" ), Matangi Tonga, 11 April 2008〕 and that TBC reporters would be banned from reporting on political matters, allegedly because they lacked the necessary training for objective coverage.〔("Reporting restrictions in Tonga criticised by region" ), ABC Radio Australia, 10 April 2008〕 The decision was criticised by the Pacific Islands News Association, and New Zealand's Minister of Revenue, Peter Dunne, commented that it was "unfortunate". Tonga Review said that the decision was a restriction on freedom of speech, and compared Tonga with Zimbabwe,〔("Tonga and Zimbabwe have something in common - restriction on free speech" ), Tonga Review, 7 April 2008〕 a comparison rejected by the TBC.〔("TBC Boss Responds to Tonga Review Article" ), Tonga Review, 10 April 2008〕 Tongan MP Clive Edwards said that the TBC's decision was aimed at stifling criticism of the government in the lead-up to the election, and to hamper the re-election chances of pro-democracy MPs. Pesi Fonua, head of the Tonga Media Council, said that the election "very much depends on how the candidates present themselves", and that censorship would "definitely have an impact". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tongan general election, 2008」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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