Author: Rakchat

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Executive Summary

The month of March is very significant in the history of Bangladesh. In 1971 the people of this country became resilient against the exploitation and suppression of the West Pakistan regime and developed a struggle for independence in order to destroy the undemocratic rule of West Pakistan. On 25 March 1971, the Pakistani Army attacked the unarmed Bangladeshi civilians and commenced genocide. From 26 March, the people of Bangladesh  (then  East  Pakistan)  jumped  into  the  liberation  struggle  and  on  16

December 1971 Bangladesh became independent when the Pakistan Army surrendered. The people of this country sacrificed their lives and honour to build a nation based on equality, human dignity and social justice. That goal is yet to be achieved. The people of this country are victims of grave human rights violations. The controversial elections of

5 January 2014 and the subsequent local government elections, deprived the people of

Bangladesh  from  their  right  to  vote.  The  opposition  political  parties  and  ordinary people are also deprived from the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly and association. The government has enacted repressive laws and imposing them  against  dissenters  and  people  who  have  alternative  beliefs.  Many  people, including leaders and activists of the opposition parties, are becoming victims of enforced disappearance, extrajudicial killing and torture. The government has created a fearful  environment  in  the  country  by  destroying  civil  and  political  rights  of  the citizens. As in previous months, allegations of enforced disappearance, extrajudicial killing and custodial torture of leaders-activists of the opposition parties during remand and death in jail due to lack of treatment, were also reported in March 2018. Odhikar believes that people are losing their confidence and faith in the judicial system due to a dysfunctional criminal justice system, impunity of law enforcement agencies and corruption. Incidents of killings by mob violence continued in March 2018.

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ODHIKAR month of February Human Rights Reports highlighting escalating the human rights situation just 10 months before the 11th parliamentary elections

Year 2018 is significant year for the Bangladesh, which we supposed to have 11th Parliamentary elections in December. The election will be going to have elections with the situation of human rights deteriorated in great extend last 10 years. The current Awami League led alliance government in power since 2009 and they have removed unilaterally the Government system in 2011.

The country is created a fearful environment in the country with severely curtailing civil and political rights. Many people, including leaders and activists of opposition political parties and dissenting voices became victims of persecution, enforced disappearance, torture, extrajudicial killing and kneecapping. Furthermore, rights to freedom of opinion and expression; and assembly and association were violated and several repressive laws were enacted and amended by the government during its reign.

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The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) congratulates the people of Nepal for the successful holding of the historic 2017 House of Representatives and Provincial Assembly Elections. It is the first to take place since the promulgation of the 2015 Constitution which marked the final stage of the peace process after a decade-long of civil war in the country.

We applaud the Election Commission of Nepal (ECN) for the generally peaceful and smooth management of the elections.  The polling officers, security agents, and all election staff deserve to be recognized for their hard work.

We wish to compliment all political parties and candidates for the important role they played in this democratic exercise.

We congratulate the civil society for their involvement in the electoral process, especially the election observer groups, for their efforts and contributions in monitoring the various aspects of the elections. The findings and recommendations based on professional observation work of all election monitoring groups, domestic and international, will be of great value to the advancement of electoral democracy in Nepal.

We encourage stakeholders in Nepal to foster a spirit of camaraderie and cooperation as the country builds and strengthens its democratic institutions.

“We hope that this important electoral process brought the Nepalis a renewed sense of hope and enthusiasm in building stronger and more credible democratic processes,” said Mr. Damaso Magbual, ANFREL Spokesperson and Head of the 2017 Nepal Mission.

We hope that the ongoing counting process will be completed efficiently and without delay. ANFREL urges ECN to remain transparent throughout the process of counting and to resolve complaints in a fair and timely manner. We also appeal to all candidates to uphold the rule of law and direct all complaints and disputes to ECN or to relevant authorities.

ANFREL deployed a five-member study team to undertake an independent assessment of key thematic areas concerning the electoral process. The team launched their study mission upon arrival in Kathmandu in 21 November 2017 until 10 December 2017.  A final statement based on the results of its study will be published after the completion of the counting process.

For further information, please feel free to contact Ms. Chandanie Watawala at chandanie@anfrel.org

The Asian Electoral Stakeholder Forum (AESF) is a continuing engagement between election management bodies (EMBs) and civil society organizations (CSOs) in Asia. There have already been three successful gatherings since it was first launched in 2012: AESF-1 in Bangkok, Thailand (2012), AESF-2 in Dili, Timor-Leste (2015), and AESF-3 in Bali, Indonesia (2016).

The Asian Network for Free Elections, with members across Asia, championed the creation of a mechanism to address common electoral issues while also advancing the rule of law and honoring the cultures, traditional laws and customs of the many peoples who live in Asia.  The result is the holding of the first-ever regional gathering of Asian Electoral Stakeholders with the Bangkok Declaration on Free and Fair Elections as its product. The declaration identified the most significant and widespread barriers to free and fair elections in Asia and strengthened the resolve of the Asian people to address them by involving all relevant stakeholders. It was considered a major milestone to Asian electoral democracy. Since then, CSOs have undertaken initiatives to promote the Bangkok Declaration by endorsing and cooperating with EMBs on programs that aim to address and tear down such barriers.

AESF has also drawn the attention of EMBs with the 2nd AESF held in Dili, Timor-Leste with support of the National Commission of Elections (CNE) in March 2015. Asian stakeholders once again gathered together with representatives from other regions that enriched the sharing and discussion. AESF-2 has led to the endorsement of the “Dili Indicators on Democratic Elections”  intended to be used as a guide to assess election credibility.

With the Forum becoming one of the most celebrated gatherings of Asian EMBs and CSOs, the 3rd AESF was held a year after the Dili AESF. This time around, Indonesia’s General Election Commission (KPU) supported and co-organized the Forum. The event concluded with the participants endorsing the “Bali Commitment: Electoral Integrity: Eight Keys to Transparency.”

The 4th AESF, co-hosted by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka and the Asian Network for Free Elections will take place in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 27 to 28 August 2018. It will once again provide the space and opportunity for electoral management bodies, civil society organizations, and other stakeholders to meet and gather to recognize present challenges and commit on ways on how to address them.  It will mark a historic milestone for South Asia, being the first AESF to be held in the sub-region.

Representatives from intergovernmental organizations such as the United Nations (UN), South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) are invited in this important event.
The 4th AESF will adopt the theme: “Advancing the Election Transparency and Integrity Agenda: Overcoming Asian Democracy Challenges through Cooperation.” Also, the two-day gathering is designed to center on developing strategies to actually enhance transparency and integrity for credible elections in the region.

To know more about AESF IV or to register, please visit the following link: AESF IV Information

In the opening of Regional Conference on Democracy in Southeast Asia: Achievements, Challenges, Prospect. Kuala Lumpur, 2-3 Sep 2017. Hosted by Kofi Annan Foundation and Suhakam. ANFREL Team with Ichal Supriadi, Damaso Magbual, Koul Panha, Titi Anggraini Mashudi, Ramon Casiple, with company of Mandeep Singh, Maria Chin Abdullah, Hasyim Asy’ari, Luie Tito Guia, Chito Gascon.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia
June 6, 2017

The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) congratulates the people of the Kingdom of Cambodia for their courage in turning up in great numbers to exercise their right to vote. ANFREL also commends the steps taken by the National Election Committee (NEC) to improve the voting process and by many other stakeholders who dedicated their best efforts to ensure a successful election day.

ANFREL acknowledges the success of election day operations, with voting found to be generally smooth, high voter turnout across the country and relatively few incidents to report, although uneven implementation of the rules prescribed by the NEC occurred. The campaign preceding election day was also more vibrant and peaceful than in the last elections, despite the persistence of traditional unfair patterns, such as the use of state resources for campaigning, intimidation of political opponents, media and CSOs, and vote-buying to mobilize supporters.

Among the most significant improvements observed in this year’s polls compared to past elections were the creation of a new electronic voter list, instrumental in avoiding occurrences of vote-padding and double voting, and the adoption of a revised NEC law in 2015. The election management body established by this law is more balanced and effective, as evidenced by its fairer regulations and guidelines.

ANFREL observed an efficient electoral system attributable to the NEC’s polling rules and their implementation. On election day, the mission observed relatively few deviations from standard polling procedures, with most occurrences caused by inadequate training of polling staff. In this regard, additional efforts should be made to enhance the capacity of the country’s election management bodies ahead of the 2018 general elections.

However, ANFREL is concerned about the decision of the NEC to extend the issuance of verification letters by Commune Election Commissions (CEC) until 2:30 PM on election day. While the intention of enfranchising voters without IDs is laudable, the NEC action changed regulations after the opening of polling stations, created confusion, and came too late for a number of voters who had already been turned away at the polls by election officials. ANFREL observed that in some instances these verification letters were emitted by CECs in large numbers and without the required documents, which calls into question the integrity of the last minute additions to the voter list.

ANFREL also received reports from some stakeholders of off-duty troops voting outside of their communes of residency, sometimes in large numbers, and military-dominated polling stations. Despite these reports needing further verification, these occurrences should be avoided in next year’s elections, so as to not undermine the people’s trust in the voting process.

Furthermore, ANFREL expresses its concern with the generally deteriorating legal environment, harassment of journalists and attacks on the freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, all of which serve to undermine faith in the electoral process. Pre-election statements made by some authorities which influenced people’s freedom to exercise their political rights. International observers call on the government to ensure a fear-free electoral environment during elections which respects international human rights values and principles.

These include, but are not limited to, comments from: Defense Minister Tea Banh, warning that opposition protesters would have their teeth smashed ; Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces Chea Dara declaring that the military will support Prime Minister Hun Sen “forever ”; and the Prime Minister himself stating that he was willing to “eliminate 100 or 200 people ” to stay in power.

Along with threats made directly to some of the country’s NGOs and media , and a legal framework restricting the activities of NGOs and political parties, such statements indicate that Cambodia has not quite reached the level playing field that is most conducive to multiparty democracy. Nonetheless, political rallies were remarkably peaceful throughout the campaign with only isolated events of violence being reported.

ANFREL lauds the efforts of the Cambodian civil society organizations (CSOs) to engage and unite election stakeholders, and for deploying 74,671 domestic observers, as well as the 85.7% voter turnout. This culture of vigilance and active political participation should be greatly encouraged and cultivated through the adoption of laws which do not limit dissent and free speech. The delegation entreats the Cambodian Government to consider dropping the stringent laws which limit CSO freedoms and rights. Furthermore, ANFREL supports other international election observation mission which utilizes a comprehensive methodology and non-partisan code and rubber-stamped judgement on the conduct of the poll.

ANFREL expects electoral reform on the area of ensuring a level playing field, strengthening the NEC as an institution, codes ensuring the neutrality of all state authorities, a comprehensive campaign finance and audit regulation, a freer media, and general enfranchisement of citizens within and outside the country.

From May 29 to June 5, this ANFREL Mission headed by Mr. Rohana Hettiarachchie deployed 15 election observers including two (2) election analysts throughout Cambodia to monitor the campaign and election day. The mission covered 13 provinces during the campaign monitoring period, and 151 polling stations during election day in 18 provinces. The mission conducted desk reviews, in-depth interviews, and polling station observation. ANFREL will release its election observation mission interim report after the announcement of the official results of the election to further elaborate on the the points mentioned.

For further information, you may reach Anfrel through Mr. Karel Jiaan Antonio at karel@anfrel.org. A Khmer interview can be arranged upon appointment.