Algerian constitutional reform approved on record low turnout

ALGIERS: Algerians approved a revised version of the North African country's constitution with two thirds of votes cast, the electoral commission said Monday, after record low turnout in the previous day's referendum.

The vote had widely been seen as a regime manoeuvre to neutralise the Hirak protest movement, which at its peak had swept long-time president Abdelaziz Bouteflika from power.

The Hirak had called for a boycott of the referendum.

The revised text passed with 66.8 percent of the vote, National Independent Elections Authority (ANIE) chief Mohamed Charfi told a news conference, noting that the exercise took place in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic.-AFP