633 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "Unreasonable restrictions include those based on race, sex, religion, ethnic origin, past political affiliations, language, literacy, property, or ability to pay a registration fee."
- "Racial restrictions on access to public service are prohibited by the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (art. 5 (c)) and by the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid (art. II (c))."
- "The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination prohibits any racial discrimination affecting the right to vote or to stand for election, and expressly calls for universal and equal suffrage."
- "Parties representing national minorities must be permitted."
- "Neither candidates nor voters must find themselves obliged to reveal their membership of a national minority."
- "The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be guaranteed without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property or official capacity, place of birth or other status."
- "Consensus exists that certain criteria to limit who has the right to vote are unacceptable. Based on Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other international human rights instruments, the following criteria cannot be employed to restrict who in a society has the right to vote: Race, Color, Sex, Language, Religion, Political or Other Opinion, National or social origin, or Ownership of property. Similarly, there is agreement that the right to vote cannot be refused to an individual because he or she is illiterate or lacks financial resources. In addition, based on international standards and practices the right to vote should not be denied based on a person's physical disabilities or sexual orientation."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: religion."
- "...[S]ignificant segments of the population [should not be] disenfranchised (prevented from voting) by: (1) unreasonable criteria restricting eligibility, such as the use of distinctions based on race, color, gender, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, social group, past political affiliations, literacy, property ownership and ability to pay."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: ethnic origin."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: political affiliation (past and present)."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: language."
- "While language regulations may be established for the proceedings of public institutions, including parliamentary institutions, the exclusion on linguistic grounds of anyone to stand for office is in violation of Article 25 of the ICCPR and, more simply, interferes with the freedom of the electorate to choose their representatives."
- "Fluency in an official language is a requirement that may discriminate against a national minority that does not speak the language…. States should not prescribe or proscribe the use of any language in electoral campaigns."
- "Language proficiency should not be used for eligibility to register as a voter or to stand for public office."
- "Ensure that persons with disabilities can effectively and fully participate in political and public life on an equal basis with others, directly or through freely chosen representatives, including the right and opportunity for persons with disabilities to vote and be elected, inter alia, by: i. Ensuring that voting procedures, facilities and materials are appropriate, accessible and easy to understand and use; ii. Protecting the right of persons with disabilities to vote by secret ballot in elections and public referendums without intimidation, and to stand for elections, to effectively hold office and perform all public functions at all levels of government, facilitating the use of assistive and new technologies where appropriate."
- "An effort should be made to design election materials that are accessible to disadvantaged voters such as the blind and the deaf. In the absence of these materials, assistance should be provided to enable such voters to vote."
- "Polling stations should be situated in venues that are accessible to all voters, especially the elderly and the people with disabilities."
- "There should be clear procedures for the provision of necessary assistance to disabled, illiterate and elderly voters that protect, as far as possible, their right to vote secretly."
- "Election laws may contain special provisions to facilitate voting by persons who are physically disabled, those in hospital or in prisons, those who are out of the country or who cannot come to the polling station for other valid reasons."
- "Handicapped or severely ill people must also have a chance to vote."
- "Voters with special needs, including the disabled, the elderly, students, conscripts, workers (including migrant workers out of the country), foreign service personnel and prisoners who have retained voting rights, should be accommodated."
- "The right of persons to stand for election should not be limited unreasonably by requiring candidates to be members of parties or of specific parties."
- "Electoral laws and procedures should guard against unfair advantage being bestowed upon Government-supported candidates."
- "No person should suffer discrimination or disadvantage of any kind because of that person's candidacy."
- "The legal framework should ensure that: Every party and candidate has equitable access to the media, especially the electronic media, to undertake their campaign."
- "Political parties and candidates should be able to freely express their campaign messages."
- "Any advocacy of national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence shall be prohibited by law."
- "For example, it is permissible for States to regulate speech advocating national, racial or religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence."
- "Respect the right of individuals and groups to establish, in full freedom, their own political parties or other political organizations and provide such political parties and organizations with the necessary legal guarantees to enable them to compete with each other on a basis of equal treatment before the law and by the authorities."
- "The maintenance and development of genuine democracy require the existence and strengthening of free, independent, pluralistic, and responsible journalism. This requirement is reflected in the need for journalism to: submit the exercise of the various types of powers to continuous and critical examination."
- "Information and materials about voting should be available in minority languages."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: literacy."
- "Specific methods such as photographs and symbols should be adopted to ensure that illiterate voters have adequate information on which to base their choice."
- "National authorities should take positive measures to overcome specific difficulties such as illiteracy and language barriers which prevent persons entitled to vote from exercising their right effectively."
- "People who are illiterate must be able to distinguish between the ballots without their right to secret elections infringed."
- "Reasonable requirements are usually limited to minimum age, nationality ... The work of the Human Rights Committee provides a good deal of guidance on the limits of reasonable restrictions. In the course of their deliberations, as mandated by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, members of the Committee have noted that the following limitations on voting rights are not permissible: (e) literacy requirements."
- "Unreasonable restrictions [on voter registration] include: property."
- "Reasonable requirements are usually limited to minimum age, nationality ... The work of the Human Rights Committee provides a good deal of guidance on the limits of reasonable restrictions. In the course of their deliberations, as mandated by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, members of the Committee have noted that the following limitations on voting rights are not permissible: economic requirements, based on receipt of public assistance, ownership of property, or income."
- "If residence requirements apply to registration, they must be reasonable, and should not be imposed in such a way as to exclude the homeless from the right to vote."
- "…residence is a common requirement for eligibility to vote in a constituency based electoral system. That requirement may however operate in a discriminatory way in respect of refugees...nomadic peoples, or internally displaced persons."
- "Distinctions between those who are entitled to citizenship by birth and those who acquire it by naturalization may raise questions of compatibility with Article 25 [of the ICCPR]."
- "Reasonable requirements are usually limited to minimum age, nationality ... The work of the Human Rights Committee provides a good deal of guidance on the limits of reasonable restrictions. In the course of their deliberations, as mandated by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, members of the Committee have noted that the following limitations on voting rights are not permissible: (c) restrictions on voting by naturalized citizens."
- "As citizens of the country, IDPs should still retain all of their political rights, including the right to participate in the country’s electoral process. Measures will need to be taken to ensure their enjoyment of these rights. In particular, this will include a continuation of their right to suffrage and their right to cast a vote, which may be affected by their forced change of residence or loss of documentation."
- "Reasonable requirements are usually limited to minimum age, nationality... The work of the Human Rights Committee provides a good deal of guidance on the limits of reasonable restrictions. In the course of their deliberations, as mandated by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, members of the Committee have noted that the following limitations on voting rights are not permissible: (d) language requirements."
- "Unreasonable restriction [on voter registration] include: registration fee."
- "The purpose which a file is to serve and its utilization in terms of that purpose should be specified, legitimate and, when it is established, receive a certain amount of publicity or be brought to the attention of the person concerned, in order to make it possible subsequently to ensure that: (a) All the personal data collected and recorded remain relevant and adequate to the purposes so specified."
- "Subject to cases of exceptions restrictively envisaged under principle 6, data likely to give rise to unlawful or arbitrary discrimination, including information on racial or ethnic origin, colour, sex life, political opinions, religious, philosophical and other beliefs as well as membership of an association or trade union should not be compiled."
- "The voter register does not need to include personal data other than that which is required to identify a voter and establish eligibility."
- "Voters lists should either not include, or should carefully protect, personal data beyond that required to identify a voter and establish his or her eligibility."