Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma has constituted an Observ-er Group for the 2015 Guyana National and Regional Elections following an invitation from the Government of Guyana.
A release from the Commonwealth on May 1st said that the Observer Group will be led by Kate Wilkinson, former Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister in New Zealand. It will also include Dr Noor Mohammad, Former Deputy Elections Com-missioner, India. The team will be here until May 19th.
The Commonwealth has been a key international observer at general elections here.
Sharma said in the press release: “The Common-wealth is committed to preserving its long tradition of support for elections in Guyana. Since 1992 we have been observing its national polls and we are pleased to be given the opportunity to contribute to the further consolidation of its democracy.
“These elections are crucially important for the people of Guyana, as they choose their representatives. It is therefore imperative that the electoral process is transparent, fair, credible, and free of violence.”
The Commonwealth Observer Group, the release said, will consider the pre-electoral environment and preparations. On polling day and thereafter, members will observe the voting process, counting and tabulation procedures and the announcement of results.
“The Group will assess all factors affecting the credibility of the electoral process as a whole. It will determine whether the elections have been conducted according to the standards for democratic elections to which Guyana has committed itself, with reference to its own election-related legislation as well as relevant regional, Commonwealth and international commitments.
“The Commonwealth Observer Group will act impartially and make an independent assessment of the electoral process. It will conduct itself according to the standards expressed in the International Declaration of Principles for Election Observation, to which the Commonwealth is a signatory”, the release added.
Upon completion of its assignment, the Group will submit its report to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who will then send it to the Government of Guyana, the Guyana Elections Commission and the key political parties, before making it available to all Commonwealth Governments.
The release said that the Group will be in Guyana from yesterday to 19 May 2015. A four-member staff team from the Commonwealth Secretar-iat, led by Albert Mariner, Head, Caribbean/Pacific Section, Political Division, will provide technical support to the international observers.
The other members of the team are Nana Asantewa Afadzinu, Executive Director, West African Civil Society Institute, Ghana; Dr Hume Johnson, Professor of Public Relations and Media Stu-dies, Jamaica; Ahmed Issack Hassan Chairperson, Indepen-dent Electoral and Boundaries Commis-sion, Kenya; Rajwantee Bullock Local Govern-ment Cou-ncillor, Trinidad and Tobago and Raymond Whitaker, Writer and Editor, United Kingdom.
