Immediate and Concerted Efforts Needed to Prevent Violence, Remove Uncertainties

Remarkable progress has been accomplished in reforming the framework for Kenya’s elections, an NDI delegation found during a pre-election assessment mission. Nevertheless, immediate and concerted efforts are needed to prevent political violence and to remove uncertainties in the electoral environment that could threaten the integrity of elections. 

As a young Kosovar Albanian subjected to Slobodan Milosevic’s dictatorship, Aferdita Syla, like tens of thousands of other young people, faced discrimination in education and virtually every other aspect of her young life.  Her fundamental rights of citizenship were wholly denied.  She had little in the way of realizing her dreams to live a normal life in a normal country.

After decades of military rule and economic stagnation, Burma is beginning to institute political and economic reforms, but these are only beginning, Peter Manikas, NDI senior associate and regional director for Asia programs, said in Senate testimony April 26 before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia and Pacific Affairs. The outcome is not assured, he said.  The political situation is fragile and much more needs to be done to help ensure that the democratization process continues. 

A coalition of civil society organizations from across Libya has launched the Shahed Network for election observation, the first citizen election monitoring effort ever attempted in the country.