NDI - Ukraine

Civic Network OPORA Local Election Monitoring Highlights

rrunyan — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 18:16:41 +0000

Author:

OPORA

Publisher:

OPORA

Published Date:

10/15/2010

Resource Type:

Report

Language:

English

Media Type:

PDF

English

Attachment	Size
OPORA_Ukraine_civic_network_report.pdf	115.59 KB

Ukraine's Upcoming Elections: A Pivotal Moment

fgalleto — Wed, 23 May 2012 18:54:26 +0000

Author:

Katie Fox

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

05/17/2012

Resource Type:

Testimony

Language:

English

Attachment	Size
Read the testimony	147.53 KB

Ukraine at a crossroads

ntekeei — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 18:27:36 +0000

Source:

The Washington Post

Article Link:

Published Date:

04/18/2012

"It is not too late to take the democratic path," Damon Wilson, executive vice president of the Atlantic Council and a member of Freedom House’s Ukraine assessment mission, writes in this Washington Post editorial. Wilson, who recently met with former Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko and former interior minister Yuri Lutsenko—both imprisoned—as part of a Freedom House mission to examine the state of democracy in Ukraine, writes that criminalizing political differences hurts democracy in Ukraine, as well as the country's European Union aspirations. According to Wilson, the government has made progess toward improved human rights, but it has not done enough, and the country risks being "relegated to the borderlands" of Europe.

"Ukraine teeters between Eurasian malaise and an ambivalent Europe. As long as the government in Kiev criminalizes political differences, it will find itself in control at home but increasingly isolated internationally."

Ukrainian Women Leaders Learn from U.S. Counterpart

fgalleto — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 17:20:36 +0000

Dina Titus, former member of the U.S. House and 20-year member and former minority leader of the Nevada State Senate, recently spent a week in Ukraine working to help aspiring and elected women politicians and political party representatives overcome the particular challenges that women face in politics.

Traveling with Gail Tuzzolo, a campaign consultant from Nevada, the two emphasized the importance of addressing underlying issues of discrimination facing women and helping each other — even across party lines — to get more women into positions of power.

“I think they were really hungry to hear what we had to say,” Titus said on her return.

Titus (r) trains women leaders in Kyiv.

“I think they were really hungry to hear what we had to say,” Titus said on her return.

Despite the prominence of former Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko and a few other women in leadership positions, traditional gender roles still prevail in Ukraine. There are no women in the Cabinet of Ministers or among regional-level governors. Women make up only 8 percent of Ukrainian parliamentarians and they tend to vote with their party, rather than joining together to pursue common interests.

Partisanship runs high in Ukraine, but Titus said the women MPs she and Tuzzolo met were receptive to the idea of an informal caucus that might tackle common issues. “We tried to focus on issues that weren’t so partisan,” said Titus. “I used the example of ‘potty parity,’ in Nevada – getting more women’s restrooms in public buildings. No matter what party you belong to, it’s a common problem.” Issues like child care or women’s health care have the potential to bridge a similar divide in Ukraine, she said.

Titus also worked with women outside the capital who are hoping to run for local offices, many of whom are young and haven’t run before. The women were enthusiastic, some having ridden a train all night to attend the training session in Kyiv. Sharing personal stories about the obstacles she faced during campaigns and in office, Titus discussed how to overcome some of the challenges Ukrainian women face, such as receiving less financial support from political parties.

“We tried to tell them how important volunteers are,” Titus said. “Mostly they just hire people to hand out brochures or give out information, and the same people who might work for you today will work for your opponent tomorrow. So the idea of building up a volunteer base was rather an unusual idea.” She also stressed forming personal connections by going door to door as another strategy for winning votes when facing a lack of funds or media attention.

At the end of the seminar, the women exchanged email addresses with the promise to keep in touch. “We kept telling them, ‘You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. If it works in one place, maybe it would work in your community, so you need to be talking to each other, seeing what the others are doing.’”

Titus and Tuzzolo also met with representatives of the government party, the Party of Regions, as well as from two emerging opposition parties, Udar and Front of Change, which are developing women’s departments. These departments provide a way for parties to educate their members on gender issues and to recruit and train women candidates. They also discussed the importance of establishing committees to oversee aspects of the parties’ work with women, including recruitment and communication, the role of women in building a corps of party volunteers, and ways of incorporating women’s input into party platforms.

Titus also met with civil society groups that are working to change the election law and to expand freedom of assembly rights. She discussed how to lobby, ways to get public support, and strategies for forming and maintaining a coalition.

“It was fascinating to learn firsthand about the culture and political history of a country that became independent of the Soviet Union just 20 years ago and is now struggling along the path toward democracy. It became very clear that women are critical change agents in this transformation,” she said.

Published Aug. 11, 2011

NDI Pulls Out of Election Drafting Group, Calls for More Inclusive and Transparent Election Reform

fgalleto — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 19:49:09 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

03/17/2011

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English

Attachment	Size
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Yanukovich's First Year

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 20:05:27 +0000

Source:

International Herald Tribune

Article Link:

Published Date:

03/01/2011

Steven Pifer and William Taylor discuss the lack of political freedom under Victor Yanukovich's recent policies in Ukraine and what that means for his goal of integrating the country into the European Union.

"If President Yanukovich is committed to European integration and E.U. membership, his administration’s domestic actions make achieving that goal much tougher. The European Union has turned its focus to internal issues and shows little enthusiasm for integrating neighboring states. To the extent that Europeans see Kiev adopting a more autocratic model of government, it will be that much easier for them to ignore Ukraine’s desire to integrate.

So President Yanukovich faces a choice. He can continue, or allow the continuation of, current domestic policies and watch his chances of integrating Ukraine into Europe fade. Or he can strengthen democratic institutions — which, by the way, resulted in his own election last year — and restore positive momentum to the relationship between Ukraine and Europe."

Election Law Reform as Disappointing as Last Fall’s Elections

fgalleto — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:16:15 +0000

Source:

Kyiv Post

Article Link:

Published Date:

02/25/2011

Writing in the Kyiv Post, Kristina Wilfore, NDI resident director in Ukraine, examines the electoral reform process in the country and finds it disappointing.

"Last fall’s local elections were a great disappointment for many non-partisan election watchers who had hoped that bad elections in Ukraine were a thing of the past. Unfortunately, three months into the reform effort, the president’s initiative looks to be equally disappointing.

"The most important thing the working group can do is reassure Ukrainians of all political stripes that future elections will be fair. This means maintaining elements of past laws that contributed to several years of democratic elections in Ukraine while solving problems that cropped up last fall. Just as important is making sure that all parties trust the process leading to the needed changes."

NDI E-news: The Middle East, African Elections, Belarus | Jan./Feb. 2011

fgalleto — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:10:35 +0000

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February 2011

Now the Hard Work Begins...

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Egyptians celebrate in Tahrir Square. Photo by RamyRaoof.

Following weeks of protests in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Bahrain, thousands in Libya are now advocating for political freedoms long denied by the country's regime. The government has responded with beatings, shootings and arrests. NDI condemned this government-backed violence and joined calls for the immediate cessation of attacks against Libyans who are exercising their right to peaceful assembly, and for a democratic transition.

As democracy advocates raise their voices throughout the Middle East, analysts and commentators have turned to NDI seeking insights into the implications of the ongoing changes for the future of democracy in the region. In The New York Times,
The Washington Post, on CNN and elsewhere, NDI leaders and staff have offered commentary and interpretation as the historic changes have unfolded.

The Institute has a long history in the region. Its first office, for the West Bank and Gaza, opened in 1994. Since then, NDI staff have also been based in Egypt,
Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon,
Mauritania, Morocco and Yemen. Institute programming also encompasses Algeria, Bahrain,
Kuwait,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia
and Tunisia.

In all of these countries, NDI has established partnerships with political parties, civic groups, parliamentarians and others seeking to promote peaceful reform and have a voice in how they are governed. The Institute works to share organizational skills, comparative experiences and tools to connect democratic activists within and between countries.

In response to the developments in Egypt, for example, NDI is putting Egyptian activists in touch with political leaders from Chile, Poland and elsewhere so they can take advantage of lessons learned during other democratic transitions. It's similar to work the Institute has done in many other places and times, such as when it brought opposing Northern Ireland factions together in South Africa in 1997 to learn from Nelson Mandela and others how to negotiate peace and reconciliation.

African Election Roundup: Nigeria, Sudan, Niger

In Nigeria, NDI is conducting an international observation mission to analyze the electoral process before, during and after presidential, legislative and local elections scheduled for April. Regular updates can be found in Nigeria Election Watch, which is based on reports from NDI's long-term observers, who began assessing election activities throughout the country from January and will continue through May. Subscribe»

In Sudan, NDI's civil society partners, the southern-based Sudanese Network for Democratic Elections (SuNDE) and the northern-based Sudanese Group for Democracy and Elections (SuGDE), observed
all stages of the recent referendum
in which Southern Sudan voted to secede from the north. The groups concluded
that "the Southern Sudan referendum allowed the free expression of the will of the people for self-determination."
Read more»

Before presidential and legislative elections in Niger, 36 political parties and two independent candidates signed a code of conduct that encouraged parties and their supporters to campaign honestly and respect the outcome of the Jan. 31 vote and the runoff election set for March 12. Read more»

Women in Afghanistan, Guatemala, Ukraine Overcoming Obstacles to Elected Office

Among the 249 members of Afghanistan's lower house of parliament are Farida Hamidi and Frishta Amini, two women who make up the entire delegation from Nimroz province. Despite the risks faced by female candidates, both women ran strong campaigns and garnered more votes than their male opponents. Read more»

In Guatemala, where indigenous women are 20 percent of the population and hold only one of the nation's 333 mayoralties, Isabel Francisco discusses her campaign for mayor of Santa Eulalia, Huehuetenango. "This is my third time as a candidate," she said. "The first time I finished in fifth place. The second time I finished in third place. This time I'm hopeful I'll win!" Read more»

Zinayida Galchynska promised herself that if she survived breast cancer she would run for local office and make a real difference in her community. She kept that promise and is now a councilor in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine — thanks in part to the skills she learned at an NDI campaign school and a campaign based on going door-to-door to meet voters. Read more»

NDI President Urges International Support for Belarusian People

NDI President Kenneth Wollack outlined ways the international community can provide moral support and practical assistance to political and civic leaders, media and ordinary citizens in Belarus, where government forces engaged in a brutal crackdown following failed elections Dec. 19. Wollack was speaking at a Jan. 27 hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs. Read more»

Colombian Municipal Councilors Hone Good Governance Skills

In Colombia, newly-elected municipal councilors generally are expected to learn on the job. To help them gather the skills they need, an NDI program focused on how to identify the needs of their constituents, develop policies to address those needs, and engage with citizens and the media. Read more»

NDI Adds 2010 Afghanistan Elections Data to Mapping Website

Complete data from Afghanistan's 2010 parliamentary elections have been added to
afghanistanelectiondata.org, the Institute's innovative mapping website
. The site now includes data from Afghan elections beginning in 2004, as well as demographic, ethnographic, topographic, security and other information. Visitors can create visual analyses of voting patterns and other assessments, or segment and envisage data and maps in a variety of ways.
Read more»

New NDI Publications

NDI, one of the world's largest publishers of Arabic-language resources and references on democracy support, has just released its latest catalogue. It includes a listing of publications and information on how to order them. Read it in Arabic | English»

Drawing on its 25 years of experience in the women's political participation field, NDI has published a new guide for democracy practitioners to help them develop and carry out effective programs to bring more women into government and politics. Democracy and the Challenge of Change: A Guide to Increasing Women’s Political Participation, helps the user develop, carry out, monitor and evaluate women’s political participation programs. The guide provides a rationale for focusing on increasing women’s participation and includes examples of best practices, case studies and practical strategies.

The new guide, Political-Process Monitoring: Activist Tools and Techniques, explores the work that the Institute and its partner groups have done for legislative, budget-related and campaign-related monitoring, shadow reporting and monitoring government follow-through.

Ukrainian Women Win Local Office Against The Odds

fgalleto — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 16:05:03 +0000

When Zinayida Galchynska was diagnosed with breast cancer several years ago, she was directing a health-care organization in Zaporizhzhya, in southeastern Ukraine. Already a community leader, she vowed that if she survived she would run for office, a move she believed would allow her to have a larger impact on decision-making in her community, particularly on health care issues. She did survive and set out to make good on her promise, though she knew the political odds were against her.

She did survive and set out to make good on her promise, though she knew the political odds were against her. Despite the prominence of former Prime Minister Yuliya Tymoshenko and a few other women, traditional gender roles still prevail in Ukraine. There are no women among the Cabinet of Ministers, regional-level governors or advisors to the president. Women make up only 8 percent of Ukrainian parliamentarians, far below the 30 percent target Ukraine agreed to in ratifying the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in 2003. Women often lack the monetary and logistical support of their political parties to make a successful run for office.

To support Galchynska and other potential women candidates, NDI launched a program that teaches women the skills needed to make a serious run for office and to take on more meaningful roles in political parties. Over the long term, the program seeks to change the cultural perception of women in politics in Ukraine.

In September, NDI conducted a series of multi-party training sessions for women candidates from three regions. The curriculum was tailored to recent electoral system changes, especially a switch to single-mandate constituency districts for half of local council seats, meaning that one there is one winner per district, regardless of overall percentage the party wins. The other half are filled by a party list system, which does take the party's percentage of the vote into account. Single-mandate races are a particular challenge for women because parties will often nominate rich community members as their single-mandate candidates, who then run the campaign at their own expense. Since men are often wealthier than women in Ukraine, fewer women run for these seats, and those that do tend to have fewer resources to spend on the campaign. The NDI training focused on campaign strategies and tactics that rely less on money and more on community organizing and direct voter contact.

Galchynska’s campaign took place in an urban residential district. She was not expecting much support from her party and did not have a lot of person funds to spend on the campaign. With skills and support from NDI’s training, she focused on direct contact with voters through door-to-door campaigning, a tactic that is often overlooked in Ukraine.

Galchynska organized 16 volunteers to do the door-knocking, designed her own campaign literature and decided what neighborhoods and demographics to target. The campaign’s message focused on improving the life and health of the community. Her party took notice, and also put her high on the party’s list for local council seats. She narrowly lost her single-mandate race, but won a seat on the council through the list.

She is one of 11 of 74 women candidates who took part in the NDI program and won elected office.

In December, NDI convened the winning candidates to discuss their campaigns and future work as elected officials. Like Galchynska, many of them overcame tremendous obstacles, and most had little support from their political parties.

During that session and in ongoing communications, NDI has shared tools to help the new councilors build coalitions, develop professional networks and perfect other methods to help them succeed in their new roles. The Institute will work with the women to form a network of female elected officials throughout the country to share best practices, exchange practical advice and, ultimately, recruit and encourage more women candidates.

Using her new platform as an elected official, Galchynska, is working to build coalitions in Zaporizhzhya to deal with urgent community problems, particularly improving health care.

Related:

Pictured above: Galchynska's campaign literature reads "Slogans do not heal - care is what heals," and urges voters to vote for her, number three on the ballot.

Published January 24, 2011

NDI E-news: Burma, Jordan, Haiti | Nov. 2010

fgalleto — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 20:57:59 +0000

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November 2010

Burma Groups Expose Intimidation, Fraud in Nov. 7 Elections

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Burmese citizens protest the 2010 elections.

Elections in Burma, the first in 20 years, along with the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi after years of house arrest, have brought increased attention to the situation in the autocratic Asian country. "Our thoughts and prayers are with Aung San Suu Kyi and her people," NDI Chairman Madeleine K. Albright said in a statement marking Suu Kyi's release.
"We will do everything in our power to be supportive as she continues the struggle to bring true democracy to Burma."

To highlight abuses associated with the elections,
the Burma Partnership, a coalition of media and human rights groups inside the country and civil society organizations across the border in Thailand, created the Burma Election Tracker website. It documents visually and in prose abuses suffered by Burmese citizens before, during and after election day. NDI provided technical assistance to the partnership in developing the site.

Burma Election Tracker visually displays election incidents by type and location.

Prior to the vote, the elections were widely seen as being structured to minimize opposition and ensure a victory by the ruling military junta. NDI analyzed the legal and human rights framework of Burma's new constitution and election law and concluded that the election process would be a setback for Burma's democratic development. The first-person accounts published on the election tracker support that conclusion, with incidents ranging from
violence and intimidation to fraud to abuse of government power. Due to the difficulty of getting reports out of the country, the site is able to compile only a fraction of incidents from the election.

"The reports that we gathered," the tracker said, "demonstrate that these elections were deeply flawed, and were fundamentally illegitimate, unfree, unfair and undemocratic."

NDI has helped local partners create similar websites to track information about elections, their run-up and aftermath.
In Afghanistan, NDI created an online mapping tool for the analysis of election results from 2004, 2005 and 2009 with layers of ethnographic, demographic, topographic and security data. Preliminary results from 2010 will be added soon. And in Bahrain,
monitors mapped incidents, polling locations, and ethnic and religious populations to draw broader conclusions about parliamentary elections in October.

Election Watch: Jordan, Ukraine, Côte d'Ivoire

In November, NDI fielded an
international delegation of 61 short- and long-term election observers that monitored all aspects of the electoral process in Jordan, from the campaign to balloting on election day to the counting of ballots. In a preliminary statement
issued after the Nov. 9 polls, the delegation said that while the vote was a clear improvement over the nation's 2007 elections, a number of structural shortcomings and other problems should be addressed for future polls. Read more»

After October local elections in Ukraine, NDI commented on
the deterioration of electoral freedoms since the country's presidential election earlier in the year. The Institute said it shared the concerns of Opora, Ukraine's largest domestic election monitoring organization and an NDI partner, which highlighted an atmosphere of mistrust. Read more»

In Côte d'Ivoire, people voted in October presidential elections, the first in 10 years, following a civil war. In an effort to mitigate election-related tensions, NDI worked with political parties seeking to reaffirm a campaign code of conduct
they'd signed in 2008, contributing to a peaceful election day. A runoff will be held Nov. 28. Read more»

New NDI Publications

Don't miss the latest NDI publications and contributions:

NDI President Kenneth Wollack and Governance Director K. Scott Hubli write in the Journal of Democracy about "Getting Convergence Right" on the relationship between democracy and development programs. Read more»

Writing in the Harvard International Review, Wollack discusses the history and evolution of democracy assistance and how such assistance fits into overall U.S. foreign policy goals. Read more»

Shari Bryan, NDI vice president, writes about "The Youth Bulge in Africa" in a paper presented to the National Intelligence Council. Read more»

NDI focus group research with more than 800 Southern Sudanese showed significant support for a referendum in which they will decide whether to choose unity with the North or to secede, and a strong desire for the vote to be held on schedule, in January. The report, Southern Sudan at the Crossroads, was released in September. Read more»

After passage of a series of constitutional reforms designed to expand democratic practices in Hong Kong, citizens are cautiously optimistic about the future. The Calm After the Storm compiles research and conclusions of popular opinion in Hong Kong following the reform vote last summer. Read more»

NDI Aids Haitian Groups Working on Presidential Debates, Cholera Containment

With 19 candidates running for president of Haiti, differentiating them by platform and issue can be difficult. To help Haitians make informed decisions in preparation for the Nov. 28 vote, NDI helped produce a series of six candidate debates, aired on 32 television and radio stations, that focused on substantive issues about the future of the country. Read more»

In an effort to contain Haiti's cholera outbreak, grassroots organizations known as Initiative Committees are working to educate citizens about the importance of hygiene and safe drinking water. Developed more than a decade ago with NDI support, the committees are using their networks to help with relief and rebuilding efforts in the aftermath of last January's earthquake. Read more»

Coalition to Monitor Vote for Better Elections in Nigeria

Nigeria is at an electoral crossroads. Next year's vote for president could herald a democratic turnaround or lead to further electoral fraud and possible violence. To monitor the process and verify results, a coalition of four prominent civil society groups have come together to form Project 2011 Swift Count, hoping that their independent effort will deter fraud and help restore public trust in the election. Read more»

Albanian Women Claim a Voice in Politics through Advocacy on Health Care

A multipartisan network of politically active Albanian women is advocating for better health care services for women, as well as spreading information about early detection and treatment for breast and cervical cancers. The educational campaign has reached nearly 5,000 women, and has led to free cervical cancer screening tests for women in one Albanian city. The women are also lobbying local and regional officials for more resources for women's health care. Read more»

Women Speak Out Against Discrimination in Burkina Faso

A coalition of representatives of women's and human rights organizations in Burkina Faso recently traveled to Geneva, Switzerland, to present a report on the status of women's rights in the West African country to the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. The coalition highlighted some of the major challenges facing Burkinabe women, including lower rates of school attendance for girls, unequal access to health care, and high rates of domestic violence. Read more»

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NDI E-news: Election Prep in Bosnia, Egypt, Afghanistan | Oct. 2010

fgalleto — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 20:52:34 +0000

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October 2010

Preparing for Election Day - Debating, Educating Assessing

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Candidates greet the moderators before debating in Bosnia.

Though the voting part of an election usually takes just a day, months and sometimes years of preparation go into making it a success. There's the preparatory work by election commissions, organizing by political parties, choosing candidates, the campaign itself, training observers, educating and motivating the electorate to participate, and creating an atmosphere in which voters feel safe enough to go to the polls. In many countries where NDI works, the Institute and its partners are involved in one or more of these aspects of election day preparation. Here are some examples:

Leading up to the Oct. 3 general elections in Bosnia, NDI partnered with two major public television stations to present a series of candidate debates.
These events, along with a series of regional town-hall style meetings, were unique for focusing on issues, and the parties' stances on those issues, rather than personal or ethnic attacks and accusations.

As Egypt prepares for legislative elections in November, a new website, www.vote4egypt.com, conveys the importance of voting. It features promotional get out the vote videos, posters and message boards, where users can discuss topics such as how to get voter identification cards and where to vote on election day. The site is part of a larger civic participation effort by the nonpartisan Bridge Center for Dialogue and Development, an NDI partner organization.

A trainer gives a presentation about her political party in Kyrgyzstan.

Before Kyrgyzstan's Oct. 10 parliamentary elections, NDI worked with women candidates and party members seeking to learn new skills needed to be effective candidates, and for gaining leadership roles within their parties.

In preparation for Afghanistan's Sept. 18 parliamentary elections, NDI conducted orientation sessions for more than 1,700 candidates (68 percent of the total), organized training for political parties, ran campaign schools for more than 240 women candidates (62 percent of the total) and provided technical assistance to FEFA, the country's largest domestic election monitoring organization. It also trained more than 36,000 candidate agents across the country to report on election day activities.

In addition to its work with local partners, NDI takes part in pre-election assessments. Recently in Jordan,
Ukraine and Nigeria, the Institute has fielded high-level delegations that have met with election officials, ruling and opposition political figures, civil society groups, journalists and others to assess the electoral environment and recommend short- and long-term improvements in the electoral process.

In Haiti, Citizens Voice Ideas and Concerns about Rebuilding

Haiti's Action Plan for National Recovery and Development is a blueprint aimed at helping Haitians rebuild and overcome the challenges posed by last January's earthquake. To ensure that citizens and local government officials have an opportunity to contribute their own ideas, initiative committees across Haiti are holding meetings to solicit advice from citizens. Read more»

Despite Violence, Voters in Afghanistan Show Commitment to Democratic Process

Although violence marred the electoral process in many parts of the country, millions of Afghans turned out to vote in legislative elections Sept. 18, showing courage and resolve to move their nation toward a more democratic future. NDI's observers released a preliminary statement lauding Afghans for their commitment to democracy while drawing attention to a number of problems with the electoral process. Read more»

New Publications Encourage Women's Political Participation

In many countries, women who want to get involved in politics lack the role models and resources to help them pursue their goals. Two new publications seek to meet those needs and encourage more women to get involved in the political process.

Aimed at young women from the Middle East and North Africa region, Confidence, Capacity, Connections: A Young Woman's Guide to Leadership is a workbook that combines ideas, strategies and advice from experts on pursuing a political career. Read more»

In Bangladesh, Who's Who: Women Leaders at a Glance profiles 134 Bangladeshi women and is designed to provide inspiration and role models to other women aspiring to leadership roles. Read more»

Iraqi National Youth Caucus Works to Turn Youth Priority Issues into Policy Changes

As Iraqis work to create a new government, a group of young people is working to perfect the civic advocacy skills they need to influence how policy is made. Members of Iraq's National Youth Caucus (NYC) came together recently to discuss their strategies for ongoing advocacy campaigns for improving high school and college education and combating the high rate of youth unemployment. Read more»

Central American Leaders See Transparency as Key to Public Security

In El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, more than three quarters of the population thinks public safety is the greatest problem facing the region. Recently, leaders from government, political parties, business, academia and civil society came together to discuss the link between transparency and security in Central America. At the NDI-supported event, the 150 participants identified and agreed on concrete actions to fight corruption and increase transparency. Read more»

New Partnerships Strive for More Inclusive, Stronger Parliaments

NDI recently signed two memoranda of understanding (MoU) that seek to strengthen parliaments and make them more accountable and inclusive.

In Kenya, NDI and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association signed an MoU to collaborate on efforts to enhance representative government around the world. The association is a group of national and subnational legislatures of the Commonwealth, representing some two billion citizens from all faiths and ethnicities from six continents. Read more»

The MoU signed by NDI and the Guatemalan Congress will allow the two to create initiatives to improve the representation of indigenous people and women in Guatemala's government and to reform laws governing elections and political parties. Read more»

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NDI Sees Deterioration in Ukraine's Election Environment and Urges Improvement | Nov. 2, 2010

fgalleto — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 15:07:36 +0000

Kyiv Post | Link to story »

"The National Democratic Institute issued a news release regarding its assessment of the ongoing election environment.

The following is the full text of NDI's new release issued today."

Link to story »

Read more like this:

NDI Sees Deterioration in Ukraine's Election Environment and Urges Improvements

rrunyan — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 19:58:02 +0000

The environment surrounding Ukraine’s Oct. 31 local elections has deteriorated compared to the situation during the presidential election earlier this year, NDI said Nov. 2.

NDI’s concerns are based on its ongoing assessment of the election environment. NDI shares the concerns of credible observers such as Opora, the largest independent election monitoring organization in Ukraine. Opora observers highlighted an atmosphere of mistrust and said the new local election law fostered confusion.

As Opora outlined in its extensive long-term observation reports, legislative and political issues – and particularly interference by state authorities – have had a negative impact on public confidence in Ukraine’s electoral process. Opora also noted that the voters’ lists have improved since the presidential election.

The environment surrounding Ukraine’s Oct. 31 local elections has deteriorated compared to the situation during the presidential election earlier this year, NDI said Nov. 2.

Legal Framework: A new local election law with significant flaws was rushed into service in July. Some favorable amendments were made in August in response to domestic and international concerns, but serious problems related to timing and content remained, which combined with a shortened campaign period to foster confusion, NDI said. Most notably, the law resulted in the creation of election commissions in which the parties of the ruling coalition had a large, disproportionate representation and leadership roles, fueling doubts about their ability to administer the elections impartially.

State Interference in the Elections: Opora and other observers reported incidences in which: law enforcement and security authorities pressured candidates not to run and observers not to monitor; election officials barred or removed candidates from the ballot and refused accreditation to credible citizen observers on spurious grounds; and prospective voters were subjected to intimidation and bribery. Further, there is little evidence to date that the authorities have conducted rigorous inquiries into such violations, NDI said, noting that a climate characterized by such claims can undermine voters’ confidence that their political rights will be respected.

These elections were seen as a test of the new administration’s commitment to democratic reforms, the Institute continued. President Viktor Yanukovych pledged repeatedly and forthrightly that the elections would be democratic, abuses of state resources and violations of the law would not be tolerated, and state authorities would be held accountable for conducting a fair and transparent process. These are commendable goals that, while not realized in the local elections, provide a foundation for future improvements, the Institute continued. In addition, representatives of the government and ruling party have expressed interest in revising Ukraine’s election laws and introducing a unified electoral code.

NDI therefore urges that:

Any electoral law revisions should ensure partisan balance in the composition and leadership of election commissions at all levels and provide an adequate timeframe for administrators and observers to prepare, parties and candidates to campaign, and voters to inform themselves. All revisions should be conducted through a process that is participatory, transparent and deliberative, with the aim of rebuilding public confidence in the Ukrainian electoral system. Only a process that allows for meaningful input from the full spectrum of Ukrainian political parties, as well as civil society organizations, will be successful.

The president’s statements calling for strict adherence to electoral laws and democratic norms should be scrupulously followed for all future elections. Employees of the government must refrain from interfering in the elections, influencing the courts or exercising administrative pressure. All candidates must be accorded equal access to the ballot and equal rights to campaign without interference. Individuals responsible for violating laws or infringing voters’ rights should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. A mechanism for publicly tracking complaints and their resolution should be established.

From Oct. 28-Nov. 2, NDI participated in a joint expert mission to the Oct. 31 elections.
That mission plans to issue its findings in the coming weeks. NDI’s ongoing assessment of Ukraine’s local election process has also included analysis of the legal framework, which was issued jointly with the International Republican Institute (IRI), and a pre-election assessment issued jointly by NDI and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES). These efforts were supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Pictured Above: Ukrainian voter deposits his ballot on election day.

Published November 3, 2010

NDI Sees Deterioration in Ukraine's Election Environment and Urges Improvements

rrunyan — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 19:50:58 +0000

Author:

National Democratic Institute

Publisher:

National Democratic Institute

Published Date:

11/02/2010

Resource Type:

Press Release

Language:

English, Ukrainian

Media Type:

PDF

English

Ukrainian

Attachment	Size
Read the press release (English)	30.33 KB
Read the press release (Ukrainian)	97.27 KB

Preliminary Statement: Findings of Local Elections Observation in Ukraine 2010

fgalleto — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 20:45:58 +0000

Author:

OPORA

Publisher:

OPORA

Published Date:

11/01/2010

Resource Type:

Statement

Language:

English

Attachment	Size
Read the statement (English)	887.5 KB

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NDI Sees Deterioration in Ukraine's Election Environment and Urges Improvements

NDI Sees Deterioration in Ukraine's Election Environment and Urges Improvements

Preliminary Statement: Findings of Local Elections Observation in Ukraine 2010