March 15, 2023 - We, as representatives of parliamentary monitoring organizations participating in the Parliament Openness and Monitoring Forum held in Taiwan in March 2023, we deeply recognize the importance of parliamentary monitoring, especially as many countries are facing the threat of democratic regression. We believe that parliamentary monitoring organizations play a
ANFREL members in the Philippines welcomed the passage of the Bangsamoro Electoral Code in the Philippines. The National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL) said they welcome the passage of the code and hoped that it would pave the way for the success of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM)
Nine journalist trained, mentored; 10 stories produced Nine Asian journalists completed the five-month intensive training on election reporting publishing 10 election-related reports developed and produced under the ANFREL Asian Media Fellowship on Election Reporting. The media fellowship program ran for five months from October 2022 to February 2023. It provided media fellows
Lek Karry has been using a smartphone for nearly two years but the grade 12 student admits she still struggles to distinguish between real and fake information online. An indigenous Brao from Ke Kuong village in northeastern Ratanakiri province, Karry initially got a smartphone to study online during the height of the
The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) submitted to the UN Human Rights Committee election-related issues concerning human rights in Sri Lanka ahead of the country's ICCPR review on 8-9 March 2023. ANFREL said the postponement of the local government elections due to the COVID-19 pandemic raised concerns about its legitimacy given
CMEV expresses its grave concern about the first death reported yesterday in connection with the Local Government Elections 2023. This death follows from the undemocratic and repressive actions of the Sri Lanka Police to prevent a protest rally organised by the National People’s Power (NPP). Nimal Amarasiri, a NPP candidate for the
ANFREL member in the Philippines, the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL), said the special election in Cavite on 25 February 2023 was peaceful and smooth but the voter turnout was low. In two updates released on Election Day, NAMFREL said that the electoral process was peaceful and smooth in the
The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) strongly condemns the blatant violation of the people’s democratic rights by the Election Commission, Treasury, Executive, Government Printer and senior officers of the Sri Lanka Police. Examining each of these public authorities and officials in turn, reveals how they have worked together to totally disrupt
CMEV expresses its deep concern about the indefinite postponement of the postal voting for the Local Government Election 2023. It has been reported that this is due to the Government Printer’s refusal to submit the printed postal voting ballot papers on time to the Election Commission. CMEV learnt that the Government Printer
Some of the websites and pages post only materials that either promote the government or attack the opposition. On specific occasions, their focus turns on journalists, writers and human rights defenders. By Qadaruddin Shishir As Bangladesh approaches a national election within a year, the authorities have shut down 191 news websites claiming
Phnom Penh, February 13, 2023 – We, the undersigned media and civil society organizations, are deeply disturbed by Prime Minister Hun Sen’s order to revoke the license of Voice of Democracy (VOD), one of the last remaining independent media outlets in Cambodia. We also condemn the recent sexual harassment and intimidation of
The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) condemns the shutdown of the Voice of Democracy (VOD) in Cambodia today, a blatant attack on media freedom and a gross violation of the Cambodian people’s right to access information. Prime Minister Hun Sen ordered the revocation of the license of the country’s one of
The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) said the 20 November 2022 Nepalese Federal and Provincial Assembly Elections were largely peaceful and orderly but significant inclusion of women and other vulnerable sectors could be improved. ANFREL said in the final comprehensive report of their international election observation mission to the 2022 Nepalese
By Rifthi Ali For the main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya candidate and media spokesperson, Uma Chandra Prakash, election-time fake news, especially disinformation on social media, is a tightrope walk with victory on one side and defeat on the other. “I was defeated in the last parliamentary elections due to fake propaganda directed
By Cristiana Ximenes Belo In March and April 2022, Timor-Leste held its presidential elections using the two-round system. During this election period, the Secretariado Técnico de Administraçᾶo Eletoral (STAE) or the Technical Secretariat for Election Administration (TSEA in English) established three parallel voting centers (PVCs) in Dili, the country’s capital, with the
ANFREL members People's Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) and Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) have put up special units where electoral stakeholders can report election-related violence and violations in Sri Lanka. PAFFREL set up a Special Election Complaints Unit where voters can submit complaints about violation of election laws
ISLAMABAD, February 2, 2023: Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) has called for introducing divisional quotas for seats reserved for women in the National and Provincial Assemblies to ensure the geographical representativeness of women as well as to incentivize their greater political role in the areas where women’s participation is marginal. In
Today marks the second anniversary of the military coup in Myanmar that took place on 1 February 2021. The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) continues to stand in unwavering solidarity with the people of Myanmar who have suffered greatly under the brutal regime and condemns the junta’s plan for a sham
We, the undersigned organizations specializing in election observation, electoral and democracy assistance, committed to the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation1 and to upholding the integrity and credibility of such endeavours, denounce and distance ourselves from the sham “election” that the illegal and illegitimate military junta of Myanmar, the State Administrative
Press Statement -31 January 2023 The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2022 released today by Transparency International reveals that the Maldives, remains at the same position on the CPI rankings amongst the two-thirds of countries to score below 50. The CPI annually scores and ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived level
Election monitors and activists express concern that digital harassment of female politicians will increase when the local council elections campaign gets into full swing in the coming weeks. According to the preliminary results of a survey conducted by the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE), more than 70 percent of female
The current electoral system and the incentive structures it creates effectively disenfranchise Pakistan's non-Muslim voters As Pakistan gears up for general elections this year, the country’s religious minorities appear dejected over their parliamentary representation. Beset by a spate of issues ranging from underemployment, a dwindling population and undercounting to victimization at the
Story by Attachai Had-anCover illustration by Kittiya On-in In preparation for the upcoming election on May 7, 2023, “The Opener” has studied the spread of misinformation and how it might impair the quest for a free and fair election in Thailand. Lessons from the 2019 election campaign until now indicate that while
Parties Need to Agree on Regulating Political Finance, Refining Results Management, Devising Mechanisms for Overseas Voting, and Catering to Representativeness Issues In Elections ISLAMABAD, January 27, 2023: Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) calls upon the political parties to immediately initiate a comprehensive dialogue on addressing the weaknesses in the existing legal
The Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) reiterates that the giving of cash handouts or anything valuable during elections is bribery. To eradicate this malady requires not only the consistent enforcement of the Election Offences Act 1954 (EOA), but also the enactment of the Political Financing Act (PFA) and the setting
Violations of Campaigning Restrictions and Lax Compliance with Ballot Issuance Persist ISLAMABAD, January 19, 2023: Voters in Karachi and Hyderabad Divisions turned out variedly to elect more than 3,508 councilors in long-delayed local government elections on January 15, 2023, that remained peaceful and relatively orderly, but were tainted by allegations of rigging
The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV), together with the Gender and Election Working Group (GEWG), conducted a press conference on 09 January 2023 to request all political parties to ensure better representation and safer participation for women in Local Government Elections. D.M. Dissanayake, Chief of Operation, CMEV stated that Sri Lanka
ANFREL released the interim report of its observation of the 2022 Nepal elections, took in 10 journalists from Asia as media fellows, and welcomed new team members during the last quarter of 2022. Four teams of international election observers were deployed in Nepal for 10 days to monitor electoral processes. Nepal held
The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) welcomes the addition of two new team members who will be contributing to ANFREL's mission of advancing electoral democracy in Asia. Ain Nesiehah is ANFREL's new program officer for capacity building who will be working on ANFREL's training programs and workshops for our members and
Tradition threatens electoral democracy and universal suffrage: not a single woman cast a vote in the 2018 General Elections in Mohri Pur First published on The Friday Times, "The Village in Punjab Where Women are Forbidden from Voting" (Urdu version) was produced under the ANFREL Asian Media Fellowship on Election Reporting. In
