Denis Marshall, Head of the Commonwealth Observer Group here for Monday’s general and regional elections, said that his team will be coordinating with others with a view to achieving a broad perspective on the polls.
In a comment to this newspaper yesterday, Marshall said, “Each Observer team is independent, and we will co-ordinate with other Observers in the field in order to maximise our overview of the electoral process.”
Further, he said that the Commonwealth will also share information with the other Observer groups “in order to obtain a perspective that is as broad as possible on the elections.”
Marshall, a former Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Secretary-General, is leading a 13-member Commonwealth Observer group which arrived on Monday
Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma constituted the observer mission at the invitation of the Government of Guyana.
He noted in a Commonwealth press release that the Common-wealth has a long history of engagement with Guyana and “we are pleased to be observing these important elections.”
“We hope that the electoral campaign and ballot will further strengthen the democratic processes there, and that all participants will engage peacefully and constructively throughout,” the release quoted Sharma as saying.
The Group’s mandate is to observe and consider all aspects of the electoral process with a view to assessing compliance with the standards for democratic elections to which Guyana is committed.
The Commonwealth said that where appropriate, the Team may make recommendations for the future strengthening of the electoral framework.
The Commonwealth said that the Group will act impartially and independently, and conduct itself according to the standards expressed in the International Declaration of Principles of Elections Observers, to which the Commonwealth is a signatory.
According to the release, the group’s report will be submitted to the Commonwealth Secretary General, who will convey it to the Government of Guyana, GECOM, political parties, and in due course to all Commonwealth governments.
The Group comprises Marshall, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Secretary General (2002 – 2006 and formally Minister of Conservation, Forestry and Lands of New Zealand; Alan Ferguson, former President of the Senate, Australia; Tayela Rehman, Executive Director Democracywatch Bangladesh; Wendy Sawatzky, Media Expert, Canada; Gerald Burton, Chairman, Election Commission, Dominica, Nana Oye Lithur, Human Rights Expert, Ghana; Catherine Musava, Elections Expert, Ghana; Dafe Akpedeye, Lawyer, Nigeria; Justice (Retd) Fazal-ur-Rahman Bazai, Elections Commissioner, Pakistan; Oliver Knight, Elections Expert, St. Kitts and Nevis; Adelle Roopchand, Com-munications Expert, Trinidad and Tobago; Timothy Neale, Media Consultant, United Kingdom; and Goodwell Lungu, Executive Director, Transparency International, Zambia.
