1357 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "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."
- "Unreasonable restriction [on voter registration] include: registration fee."
- "The authorities should ensure that the media have the right to gather and report information freely, without intimidation or obstruction, and that there is no censorship of either the media or candidates."
- "Each state party shall take appropriate measures, within its means and in accordance with fundamental principles of its domestic law, to promote the active participation of individuals and groups outside the public sector, such as civil society, non-governmental organizations and community-based organizations, in the prevention of and the fight against corruption and to raise public awareness regarding the existence, causes and gravity of the threat posed by corruption. This participation should be strengthened by such measures as: (b) Ensuring that the public has effective access to information; (d) Respecting, promoting and protecting the freedom to seek, receive, publish and disseminate information concerning corruption. That freedom may be subject to certain restriction, but these shall be such as are provided for by law and are necessary."
- "Internally displaced persons, whether or not they are living in camps, shall not be discriminated against as a result of their displacement in the enjoyment of the following rights: (c) The right to associate freely and participate equally in community affairs; (d) The right to vote and to participate in governmental and public affairs, including the right to have access to the means necessary to exercise this right."
- "Internally displaced persons who have returned to their homes or places of habitual residence or who have resettled in another part of the country shall not be discriminated against as a result of their having been displaced. They shall have the right to participate fully and equally in public affairs at all levels and have equal access to public services."
- "Any abusive interference with registration or voting as well as intimidation or coercion of voters should be prohibited by penal laws and those laws should be strictly enforced."
- "Any measures such as political violence, kidnapping, murder, threats and sanctions such as denial of development opportunities in opposition controlled areas that prevent eligible individuals to register to vote and to vote in secrecy should be perpetually outlawed by SADC member states."
- "[E]lectoral registers must be published;"
- "People meeting the requirements on age and who have lived in the country as de facto citizens for a substantial number of years, should be given the opportunity to obtain citizenship [and, thus, be given voting rights]."
- "Universal suffrage requires that the broadest reasonable pool of voters be guaranteed participatory rights."
- "To ensure easier access, minimize waiting time and enhance efficiency there should be as many polling stations as population density and settlement patterns demand."
- "The number of polling stations should be in proportion to the size of the electorate. The number of voters designated to a polling station is considered reasonable when the total number of votes cast can be processed effectively during the time available, if all voters participated."
- "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."
- "...[F]ranchise should be extended as broadly as possible and voting should be practicable for those eligible to vote. This may require broad distribution of polling sites and special arrangements for the handicapped."
- "STOs should observe the general conditions outside and around the polling station. A number of issues are relevant: Is access to the polling station difficult? Could a disabled person enter the station unassisted?"
- "Polling stations should be distributed so as to guarantee equal access within each constituency."
- "There should be an adequate number of polling staff to ensure that all tasks can be undertaken at all times. Polling staff should be trained to ensure they fully understand their functions, and should be required to act in a fair and impartial manner."
- "Polling stations should be public places , such as schools, tents, mobile vehicles that are neutral."
- "The legal framework for elections may provide for other methods of voting, such as voting by mail or mobile voting. These types of voting may be available to a single individual, such as a person who is abroad on business; to a class of voters, such as diplomats, police, the military or other security forces; or to an entire community, such as persons displaced due to the outbreak of war."
- "Special voting materials and procedures must be designed and operated in a way that provides the necessary security, as well as for sufficient transparency of the voting process, return of ballots, and counting."
- "Opportunities for access to polling stations may be undermined where there is overcrowding or a failure to inform voters of their designated polling station."
- "If a voter is unable to sign [the Voters' Register] because of a physical disability or the inability to write, then there will likely be a provision for them to be assisted in voting, either by a voter of their choice or a member of the Commission."
- "Electors who are unable to vote unaided under standard procedures, e.g., blind or illiterate voters, have the right to be provided with assistance. Wherever possible, however, steps should be taken to enable them to vote without assistance. Procedures for assistance should be regulated and publicised before election day. Assistance in marking a ballot paper should only be provided to those who would not otherwise be able to cast a ballot. The assistance provided should be independent, honest and protect the secrecy of the voter’s choice. It is best practice that the person can choose who can assist them to vote, although there may be restrictions on the number of times an individual can provide assistance. Those providing assistance should be impartial and therefore should not be candidate or party representatives."
- "In many countries, military personnel are entitled to vote at civilian polling stations… However, voting may also be organised in the barracks, which may be difficult to observe."
- "In such cases where voting is permitted in military barracks, prisons and hospitals, the process can be open to abuse potentially undermining the principles of secrecy and freedom of choice."
- "It is common and acceptable for the electoral framework to have special provisions ensuring that a member of the military is able to exercise the right to vote while on active duty. ... Concerning military voters, it is not unusual for the legal framework to permit special polling stations to be set up within military units located in remote areas far from any centre of population...wherever possible, military voters should vote in ordinary civilian polling stations."
- "Special voting procedures may include the use of mobile ballot boxes intended for the sick and elderly, voting in hospitals and prisons, early voting, voting by post, voting in embassies, and special provisions for military voting."
- "Military personnel should vote at their place of residence whenever possible. Otherwise, it is advisable that they be registered to vote at the polling station nearest to their duty station."
- "A number of countries permit their citizens to cast ballots in embassies or specially designated voting centres outside of the country."
- "Where applicable, special arrangements should be made to allow special categories of voters, such as voters living abroad and prisoners, to vote."
- "Special voting provisions should only be applied in well-defined situations."
- "The legal framework for elections may provide for other methods of voting, such as voting by mail or mobile voting."
- "Providing mobile ballot boxes and absentee voting broadens the participation of the electorate. However, these are provisions that can be open to abuse."
- "Postal voting…may be available to a single individual, such as a person who is abroad on business, or for an entire community, such as persons who are displaced due to the outbreak of war."
- "The legal framework should be flexible enough to allow for technological innovations to be applied to various aspects of balloting and counting, for example, utilizing electronic voting machines for recording and counting of ballots. Such wide flexibility might be regulated by requiring that certain types of approval be obtained before adopting them."
- "The election law often regulates mobile voting in order to allow the disabled, ill or elderly citizens to exercise their suffrage."
- "Public buildings such as schools should be given priority as polling stations. If necessary, mobile units should be used."
- "Many countries provide mobile boxes at the request of voters who may be elderly, ill, or otherwise unable to visit a polling station. Usually, the mobile boxes are taken on their rounds by at least two polling officials, ideally representing different political interests where applicable. Applying all polling-station controls to mobile ballot boxes is not possible. Voters using mobile ballot boxes may also not have all the privacy afforded by a polling booth."
- "Mobile voting... may be available to a single individual, such as a person who is abroad on business, or for an entire community, such as persons who are displaced due to the outbreak of war... It may be available to a single voter homebound due to physical incapacity, or to an entire community, such as a hospital or institution."
- "Where suffrage is permitted to citizens who reside outside of the country, opportunities should be provided to them to enable them to vote, especially in the case of refugees from that country."
- "In some cases voting by prisoners is not foreseen in the law. However, when prisoners are allowed to vote, the observation of the voting process in prisons is often sensitive and problematic."
- "Nobody should be able to vote on behalf of another person (so-called proxy voting) unless it is defined by law for specific circumstances."
- "...[P]roxy voting is another practice to be discouraged. Legislation should make it clear that every voter’s ballot must be marked and cast individually and secretly."
- "Proxy and absentee voting provisions should be designed to encourage the broadest possible participation, without compromising electoral security."
- "Polling procedures designed to dilute or discount the votes of particular individuals, groups or geographic areas are unacceptable in the light of the international norm of equality of suffrage."
- "Checking that no opportunity exists to manipulate the voting process in the polling station, for example by switching boxes, fraudulent ballot papers, voting more than once, impersonation of another elector."
- "In relation to any election or referendum, a voter shall be prevented from inserting more than one ballot into the electronic ballot box. A voter shall be authorized to vote only if it has been established that his/her ballot has not yet been inserted into the ballot box."
- "The e-voting system shall prevent any voter from casting a vote by more than one voting channel."