Clashes at Gabonese demo against defence minister

Thousands of demonstrators clashed with police in Gabon Friday at a rally calling for Defence Minister Ali Ben Bongo to resign because he is in the running to succeed his late father as president. Several people were injured in skirmishes during the rally, which was attended by several other candidates to succeed Bongo's father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who ruled the country for 41 years. Friday's unrest erupted after police used tear gas on protesters throwing stones ahead of the march, which had been called by several of the candidates. As the march gathered momentum the crowd swelled to about 10,000 in Democracy Square, according to an estimate by an AFP correspondent. Marchers shouted slogans such as "Ali resign", "We want change" and "Ali dictator." "Gabon is not a monarchy. The people must decide. Ali should go," student Ghislain Ledoux said, while informing the police: "We're not afraid of you."