28 NOVEMBER 2023: Maldives Journalists Association (MJA), Transparency Maldives,Association for Democracy in the Maldives (ADM), International Federation of Journalists (IFJ),Human Rights Watch and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) urge the Government of Maldives to expedite investigations and for the relevant authorities to pursue, where evidence permits, prosecutions to end impunity for serious crimes
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) congratulates the Unity Government for some of the institutional reforms carried out in its first year and urges for more as promised by the respective coalitions and parties in the government, in particularly Pakatan Harapan and Barisan Nasional. We opined that a post-election coalition
Several ANFREL members were recently recognized for their election work and for championing freedom of information. The Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) in the Philippines was one of the awardees during the 2023 FOI Awards which recognize government agencies, partners, individuals and civil society organizations that significantly contribute to the development
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) held its first meeting of the new Steering Committee (SC) last night to discuss the way forward after the election of the new SC for the term 2023-2025 and the unexpected resignation of newly reelected Chairperson Thomas Fann two days ago. Fann explained his
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) is proud to announce that we were a runner-up in the Citizens’ Engagement Award category at the 19th Annual International Electoral Awards Ceremony at Lisbon, Portugal. The award was won by Elections Ontario of Canada. This event was organized by the International Centre for
Transparency Maldives strongly condemns the commutation of the sentences of Ahmed Adeeb and Abdulla Ziyath, with four days until President Solih’s term expires. This is not only an abuse of the clemency and sentence commutation powers of the President, but represents the epitome of the protection, impunity and privilege enjoyed by political
Press release of Election Committee of BERSIH10 November 2023 New Steering Committee of BERSIH 2023-2025 elected The Election Committee established to conduct the election of the new Steering Committee of the Coalition for Clean and Fair Election (BERSIH) for the term of 2023 – 2025, had completed the process of polling from
The “Asia & the Pacific Roundtable Discussion on Boundary Delimitation & Malapportionment: Practice & Solutions”, concluded after two days of discussion on 28th and 29th October with the Kuala Lumpur Declaration on Apportionment and Boundary Delimitation. It was jointly organised by The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), The
October 30, 2023, Quezon City. The Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) continues to observe election day processes focusing on Accountability issues of vote buying, abuse of state resources, and election-related violence. For this 2023 BSKE, we saw how impactful COMELEC's aggressive campaign against election law violators vis-a-vis candidates' compliance with election
NAMFREL Bantay ng Bayan UPDATE #2October 30, 2023, 7pm The National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) released a second update on its observations on the conduct of the October 30, 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE). NAMFREL has been accredited by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) as citizens' arm for
October 30, 2023, Quezon City. The Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) continues to observe election day processes, with particular focus on the voting experiences of Persons with Disability (PWD), Older Persons (OP), Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDL), and Indigenous Peoples (IPs). Voting of Persons with Disability, Older Persons, and Heavily pregnant
NAMFREL Bantay ng Bayan UPDATE #1October 30, 2023, 12:30pm The National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) released its preliminary observations on the conduct of the October 30, 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE). NAMFREL has been accredited by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) as citizens' arm for the 2023 BSKE,
October 30, 2023, Quezon City. As early as 4:00 AM, the Legal Network for Truthful Election's 1,000 election observers nationwide proceeded to their assigned voting centers to observe the preliminaries to voting, the opening of polls, and the implementation of COMELEC innovations. Early Voting in Naga City & Muntinlupa City In Naga
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) will be having an election to determine the new leadership line up for the term 2023-2025. As the name suggests, BERSIH is a coalition of 58 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and each NGO is eligible to nominate, vote and have a say in the coalition’s
October 18, 2023, Quezon City. Since 28 August 2023, the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) has been monitoring electoral activities for the upcoming Barangay and SK Elections (BSKE). This is a component of a pioneering initiative to analyze how incumbent officials use state resources for their electoral advantage, affecting the standard
Odhikar released its Three-Month Human Rights Monitoring Report on Bangladesh. The group said the human rights situation in the country remained repressive and retaliatory. From January to September 2023, Odhikar has recorded 12 cases of extrajudicial killings, 32 cases of enforced disappearances, 70 killed and 6,331 injured due to political violence, 309
UPDATE: Application deadline has been extended until 23 October 2023. Transparency Maldives is now accepting applications for its Youth Camp 2023 on climate action and social accountability which will be held on 5-10 November 2023. Youth Camp 2023 is open for members of the youth who are 18-24 years old. Through the
Article 4 of the Constitution of the Republic of Maldives stipulates that the power of the State of the Maldives is derived from and remains with the people. Article 262 (b) of the Constitution further stipulates that amendments proposed to Chapter II of the Constitution (The Maldivian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,
Maldives headed to a runoff election on 30 September 2023 after no presidential candidate was able to secure enough votes to win. Transparency Maldives (TM) said the election was relatively peaceful with a few isolated cases of reported violence at polling stations. TM observed a few number of voters weren't able to
On 20 September 2023, the People’s Majlis passed a resolution to direct the Elections Commission to hold a public referendum by 30 October 2023, on changing the existing system of government. The resolution was approved by 35 members, following the approval of the resolution by the Committee of the Whole House. Following
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) welcomes the announcement by YB Dato' Seri Azalina Othman Said that the Cabinet has agreed to the enactment of the Political Financing Act. During her speech in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday, Azalina says that the Cabinet had referred seven policy parameters to the Parliamentary
UPDATE: Submission deadline extended until 31 October 2023. The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) launched an essay and video competition in conjunction with Malaysia Day and the International Day of Democracy. The public are invited to submit an essay or a video about the following: why democracy is important, most
Dhaka, 14 September 2023: The Cyber Tribunal, Dhaka today has sentenced to two years imprisonment and Taka 10,000 fine each, to Odhikar’s Secretary Adilur Rahman Khan and Director ASM Nasiruddin Elan for allegedly breaching Section 57 of the repressive Information and Communication Technology Act 2006. They were charged for releasing a report
15 September 2023, Quezon City. LENTE strongly urges the public to be vigilant of the politicization of programs and other social welfare services in view of the COMELEC’s recent decision to exempt DOLE and DSWD programs from poll spending ban. These programs, based on LENTE’s on-going in-depth research and monitoring, have historically
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Election (BERSIH) welcomes the establishment of two taskforce to expedite the separation of roles and powers between the attorney-general (AG) and public prosecutor (PP) by the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Azalina Othman Said, as well as the proceedings called by
Transparency Maldives, in their interim statement on the 2023 Presidential Election, said the Election day processes went well but expressed some concerns about the election environment especially on abuse of state resources. Election Day The report indicated that the Election Day administration was well managed by the Elections Commission (EC). The opening
Transparency Maldives said in their initial observation statements that the 2023 Maldivian Presidential Election was generally peaceful and orderly. The opening procedure at polling stations went well with all polling stations open by 9 a.m. and 85% of polling stations open within the first 10 minutes of the required opening time. The
First published on BERSIH's website on 7 September 2023. The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) welcomes the clarion call by the editorial of Berita Harian, New Straits Times, and Harian Metro to immediately put an end to incessant politicking by urging the component parties of the Unity Government and the
NAMFREL is issuing this statement firstly, to clarify its position on the issues raised and, secondly, to give its point of view on the very serious allegation of fraud attending the 2022 National and Local Elections. As Bantay ng Bayan torchbearers, NAMFREL provides a thoughtful and objective analysis of the allegations as
As Maldives is set to hold a presidential election on 9 September 2023, ANFREL member Transparency Maldives released their pre-election assessment to provide recommendations to mitigate challenges for holding free, fair, and credible election. The assessment report seeks to review the electoral legal framework, understand emerging challenges for holding a free and
