698 Results
Quotes
Quotes based on international documents, law, and treaties- "Decisions taken by EDR bodies should always be impartial. Officials dealing with EDR should act objectively and carry out their duties in an impartial manner, irrespective of their personal beliefs and interests."
- "Publication of reasoned decisions also allows the public to see how the body came to its conclusion and should alleviate any concerns of biased or arbitrary decision-making."
- "Publicly available registers of complaints could be considered to improve transparency."
- "Where hearings are held, they should be open to the public, media and observers, and any exceptions should be carefully assessed."
- "Election dispute resolution must be accessible to all."
- "While fees are a means of preventing frivolous complaints, they may also create a barrier to the dispute process, especially for women and other under-represented groups."
- "Good electoral practice advises against conflicts of jurisdiction of election administration bodies and courts."
- "The election administration should be legally empowered to take measures that stop any ongoing infringement, restore violated rights, sanction those who violate legislation and prevent similar infringements in the future. Also, the election administration should be required by law to refer any possible criminal matters that come to its attention to the relevant law enforcement body and to forward complaints not under its jurisdiction to the relevant body."
- "Decisions on any complaint or appeal should be in writing, clear and fully reasoned, stating the legal and factual grounds, including the evidence on which they are based."
- "Good electoral practice suggests that the right to bring forward such challenges [appeals of election results] should be granted to all candidates and voters in the respective constituency, although a reasonable quorum may be imposed for appeals against election results filed by voters."
- "Standard complaint forms, either physical or online, also offer complainants the guidance on the elements required for filing. Developing filing standards that are clear and accessible to all election stakeholders gative bodies in processing complaints impartially and effectively. "
- "Due to the unique nature of election complaints, investigators must make their decisions in a timely fashion and in accordance with the rules, policies, and procedures that govern the electoral process."
- "It should be emphasized that, as discussed above, legitimate complaints that are incomplete or do not meet other requirements should not necessarily be dismissed on procedural grounds. Issues of due process should be balanced in the decision to dismiss a case."
- "The principle of prompt investigation is important because election processes and results are time-bound, evidence may be time-sensitive or subject to destruction following an election, and impunity for electoral offenses may linger from one electoral cycle to the next if not dealt with in a timely manner."
- "The principle of thorough investigation is important for ensuring that any action taken in response to a dispute or allegation is based on sound evidence."
- "The principle of effective investigation is directly linked to the fact that individuals must have accessible and effective remedies in place to protect their political rights."
- "The principle of investigations being undertaken by independent and impartial bodies is fundamental to the credibility and legitimacy of the investigation process and outcome."
- "Systems that provide concurrent jurisdiction or that permit complainants to choose among investigative bodies to which they can file complaints run the risk of duplicating investigations and stoking institutional rivalry and forum shopping."
- "Without structural and procedural safeguards to ensure independence and impartiality, public perception that election investigations favor a particular side in a dispute could endanger the democratic legitimacy and the credibility of the entire electoral process."
- "The recruitment process for investigators should also be independent from political considerations and subject to external oversight, to the extent that this serves to assist in the hiring of competent, independent staff and to protect against irregularities."
- "For this purpose, both the Constitution and current legal norms should provide for the functional, administrative, and financial autonomy of the institution responsible for electoral justice."
- "Constitutional, legal and regulatory provisions that oversee controversy or appeals in electoral matters should be drafted in clear and straightforward language to ensure that it is easily understood by stakeholders, observers, and especially by dispute resolution bodies."
- "In countries where the service has a cost to those who decide to file a lawsuit, care should be taken to ensure that this can be done for a reasonable and accessible sum and that it does not constitute an impediment."
- "Given that there are legally specified periods for each electoral phase, decisions must be both timely and definitive. This implies that conflicts must be resolved before the conclusion of each respective phase of the electoral contest (e.g., any questions arising around the validity of an electoral candidate must be resolved conclusively before the electoral registration period has been completed)."
- "It is the duty of the legal authority to hear and study the arguments presented. Likewise, all parties must be guaranteed the right to present evidence in support of their claims; and the respective authority has an obligation to weigh up the evidence and to evaluate the claims presented by both parties."
- "The principle of equality between the parties should apply at all times."
- "Any decisions taken by internal bodies that may affect human rights, such as the right to political participation, must be duly substantiated and legally motivated."
- "In this context, efficacy means that the formal requirements to lodge an appeal are minimal and do not constitute an obstacle to access justice, nor impede the resolution of the legal dispute in any way."
- "Therefore, in order to guarantee the autonomy and impartiality of bodies responsible for electoral dispute resolution, their legal independence should be ensured at the highest possible level. Thus, the separation of powers must be established at the constitutional level, where it should be clearly stated that the electoral judicial body is independent of the Executive and Legislative branches and that it is not subordinate to either of these powers."
- "So as to guarantee the autonomy, independence, and objectivity of the justice operators, it is essential that the selection and appointment process be based on the personal merit and professional capacity of the candidates, giving importance to their experience and their suitability to the specific functions they are expected to perform."
- "There must be a catalog of evidence that can be presented before judicial authorities. It should be comprehensive, including evidence such as documents, testimonies, and expert witnesses. The basic inadmissibility of certain evidence should be accounted for in the law."
- "The duty to substantiate the judgment constitutes part of the right to defense since the interested party can only appeal the decision adequately if he can refute the legal grounds on which the decision is based."
- "The system of electoral justice should contain norms that uphold the principles of public accountability and transparency. All information regarding legal resolutions and the sessions in which they were issued should be made public and communicated in a language that is simple and accessible to facilitate the understanding of those who are not familiar with the specificities of electoral systems."
- "A good practice for any EJS or EDRS is to establish the right of any natural or legal person to bring a challenge before an administrative or judicial body against any electoral act or decision that it considers prejudicial."
- "Financial sanctions should be proportionate and therefore severe enough to fulfil their purpose of inhibiting prohibited conduct. If they are merely symbolic, this may be read as an invitation to break the law, as the person committing the infraction may calculate that the benefits of violating a prohibition may be greater than the cost of the sanction. "
- "The main guarantee of an effective EDR system is the availability of a remedy that can correct an irregularity by annulling, revoking, modifying or even just acknowledging it. Other mechanisms can either deter or punish a transgressor through a regime of criminal or administrative liability."
- "In order to impart justice in a manner that is absolutely faithful to the mandate of the constitution and the law, it is not enough for EDRBs to enjoy structural autonomy and functional independence. It is also necessary that those who judge electoral matters act with absolute independence, impartiality and professionalism in their individual capacity, without recognizing any subordination to any interest or will other than those stated by law."
- "The public’s trust in an EDRB is strengthened when the constitution or statute that established it contains: - transparent mechanisms for selecting and appointing its members, or at least those of its highest-level organ, based on the merits of the candidates and according to gender- or ethnic-based inclusiveness criteria, and ensuring that they will not be bound by debts of gratitude, fidelity, or animosity with respect to any individual or group."
- "The law generally establishes a predetermined term of office for judicial positions which cannot be reduced or prolonged except by provision of law. This consolidates the independence of those who judge electoral matters: they cannot be dismissed or removed for having handed down decisions that do not please, or are considered inconvenient by certain political parties or individuals."
- "Often the requirement to publish extends not only to electoral judicial rulings but also to the proceedings of the sessions in which they are made. Some examples of good practice include those in which EDRBs have agreed to broadcast their public sessions in real time through the Internet, or post their judgements on their website as soon as they are issued, along with the judicial criteria that establish binding precedent where this is applicable."
- "An optimal design for an EDR system demands clarity and simplicity. The constitutional, statutory and regulatory provisions for challenges that guarantee compliance with the electoral legal framework and the defence of electoral rights must be drafted in simple and clear language in order to meet the requirements of access to justice and legal certainty. Their content must be broadly disseminated in the language of the community where the election is to be held to ensure that they are transparent and easily understood by all interested persons and consistently followed – especially by the EDRBs."
- "It is also important to minimize the formalities required for a challenge to be deemed to have been properly filed."
- "Where a specific charge or cost is made to users of the electoral justice system, this should be at a reasonable price that takes account of criteria such as necessity and proportionality. It should not become an obstacle to access to electoral justice."
- "Electoral judicial proceedings should be timely, that is, a decision should be reached promptly and expeditiously within the legally established periods or stages of the electoral process. A decision taken outside this time frame may be unfair, and would make it impossible to correct the damage done to some electoral rights."
- "Reasonable deadlines should be provided for bringing challenges (generally shorter than those for civil litigation and other branches of administrative law). These need to balance the time required by the person alleging harm by a particular electoral act or decision to take stock of its content and scope and to gather the evidence, on the one hand, against the need to obtain a timely resolution, given that electoral processes proceed in stages that cannot be changed or interrupted."
- "The EDRS should guarantee the right to a defence or to a hearing on a challenge both to the complainant and to the person or body complained against. This includes both the opportunity to make their arguments and the obligation on the EDRB to hear and study them."
- "Violence against women in politics, as all forms of gender-based violence, constitutes a violation of human rights and is a form of discrimination against women prohibited under international human rights standards, under which States have due diligence obligations to prevent, investigate and punish acts of violence against women, whether they are perpetrated by State or non-State actors. States, therefore, have a duty to eradicate and prevent acts of violence against women in politics."
- "The Special Rapporteur makes the following recommendations to States: (a) Adopt and implement legislation prohibiting and criminalizing violence against women in politics or incorporate adequate provisions into existing laws on eliminating violence against women, consistent with international and regional human rights standards. That includes laws to prohibit sexism, harassment and other forms gender-based violence against women in politics, public life and parliament. Laws must be comprehensive enough to cover new forms of violence, including online or ICT-facilitated violence against women. "
- "Internet intermediaries should uphold the principle that human rights are protected online, and voluntary accept and apply all core international human rights and women’s rights instruments with a view to contributing to universal human rights protection and achieving the empowerment of women, and the elimination of discrimination and violence against them in digital space."
- "Intermediaries should publish clear and a comprehensive contents moderation policy and human rights safeguards against arbitrary censorship, and transparent reviews and appeal processes."