Commonwealth mission to observe December 3-5 presidential election |02 December 2015

A Commonwealth team is in the country to observe the activities before, during and after the December 3-5 presidential election.

The observer group comprises nine eminent persons drawn from across the different regions of the Commonwealth, including Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific.

Led by Lord Sevele, former Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga, the Commonwealth observer group met the press yesterday at the Savoy Resort and Spa to explain their mission in Seychelles.

The group was constituted following an invitation extended by the Electoral Commission of Seychelles.

The group which includes experts in law, politics, elections, media, gender and human rights, arrived on Saturday and will stay in Seychelles until December 10, 2015.
 
“These are significant elections for the people of Seychelles. Our presence here affirms the Commonwealth’s support to the people of Seychelles and the country’s democratic processes,” noted Lord Sevele.

He explained that an advance team arrived in the country on November 15 to take stock of the pre-election preparations and environment and met a wide range of stakeholders.

The wider group arrived last Saturday and began briefings on Sunday November 29 when it met the Electoral Commission of Seychelles.

“We have also met members of civil society organisations and expect to meet a wide range of stakeholders including political parties, Commonwealth high commissioners, and other international and citizen observer groups. The group has also observed a number of rallies,” stated Lord Sevele.

What is the role of the Commonwealth observers during election time and what is the outcome of such a visit? This is a question asked quite often by locals. For all presidential elections, the Commonwealth sends a group of observers in Commonwealth countries and they consider the pre-election, election day, and the immediate post-election day environments.  
On election day, the group will observe the voting process, vote-counting procedures and the announcement of results, and assess these processes against the backdrop of international standards for democratic elections to which Seychelles is committed.

As with all Commonwealth observer groups, this mission functions with impartiality and independence, and will be guided by the standards enunciated in the International Declaration of Principles for Election Observation, to which the Commonwealth is a signatory.

Lord Sevele assured the press that “during the polling days, members of the group will visit all 25 areas. They will be in small teams and will observe preparations ahead of polling day. During the polling period they will observe opening, voting and closing of polling stations including the results management process. We will issue an interim statement on our preliminary findings on Monday December 7 and a final report will be prepared and submitted to the secretary general and subsequently shared with relevant stakeholders and the public. The success of this election depends on every stakeholder playing their part in a peaceful, inclusive and transparent manner. We have every confidence in the people of Seychelles to achieve that.”

The members of the Commonwealth Observer group are Lord Sevele, former Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Tonga; Alvin Smith, former Speaker of the House of Assembly, and Vice-President of the Senate, The Bahamas; Mahendra Ved, Vice-President, Commonwealth Journalists Association (CJA) and chairperson, CJA India Chapter; Jane Michuki, former chairperson, Institute for Education in Democracy and Advocate of the High Court of Kenya; Susana Faletau, former chief executive of the Ministry of Justice, Tonga; Mark Ramkerrysingh, commissioner, Elections and Boundaries Commission, Trinidad and Tobago; and Deborah Ossiya, Gender, Human Rights and Governance Specialist, Uganda.

The advance team is made up of Priscilla Isaac, director, Electoral Commission of Zambia and Kenneth Abotsi, Peace and Security Expert, Ghana.

The Commonwealth secretariat staff support team is led by Martin Kasirye, adviser and head, Electoral Support Section, Political Division.

The previous reports on the elections in Seychelles can be found at www.thecommonwealth.org