LEBANON-UNDP/ELECTORAL SUPPORT Regional body to aid electoral transparency launches in Lebanon

Record ID: 150489

  • Title: LEBANON-UNDP/ELECTORAL SUPPORT Regional body to aid electoral transparency launches in Lebanon
  • Date: 8th June 2015
  • Summary: BEIRUT, LEBANON (FILE) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE VOTING IN AN ELECTION
  • Embargoed: 23rd June 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Lebanon
  • Country: Lebanon
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA2V3WS10JA4CU5MIPGUQY3BVHR
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The United Nations Development Program UNDP and six Arab nations launched on Monday (June 08) in Beirut a new body aimed to help boost transparency and regain the confidence of voters in the region.
    Many citizens living in the Arab world have lost trust in the election process, following years of autocratic regimes.
    Imad Sayeh, the head of the newly launched Organization of Arab Electoral Management Bodies (Arab EMBs), hopes that this new body will change that.
    "The main purpose is to give back trust to the Arab citizen, the trust that he lost throughout previous years during previous dictatorship regimes; that elections are just rigged elections which the president usually wins by 99.99 percent," Sayeh said.
    He recognized the specificity of the Arab countries and the need for better cooperation.
    "The need for cooperation or conditions of cooperation between these organizations is highly required, especially that we do not rely on international support especially with regard to the electoral support. It's true that in some areas, we can share with the international organizations, but there is specificity for the Arab countries, that Arab organizations share fully, this specificity imposed itself, so that resulted in the formation of the Organization of Arab Election Management Bodies,'' Sayeh said.
    Many, like Faten Youness, the General Director of Political Affairs and Refugees in the Lebanese Ministry of Interior and Municipality, believe that the different countries can look upon their individual experiences and learn from them.
    "This organization is strictly technical non-political, all it's purpose is to exchange experiences between all the arab countries concerned. Every country distinguishes itself in something. I noticed through my experience with Jordan that it is distinctive with its human cadre, Iraq organized multiple elections, Lebanon should benefit from this subject. We still have many problems facing us on the ground. We still don't have the proper mechanism for electoral issues. We still have the issue of voting from abroad and the women's quota," Youness said.
    Lebanon's current parliament extended its own mandate in 2014 due to failure of lawmakers on agreeing a new electoral law. The last parliamentary general elections were held in 2009.
    Delegates from Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Yemen, Libya, and the Palestinian Occupied Territories, participated in the launch of Arab EMBs.
    The organization aims to strengthen electoral management including planning, administration, and observation of elections.
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