Seen and heard on Theary C. Seng's and
Theary Chan Seng's Facebook accounts:
A real deep fear of MASSIVE FRAUD, that the
aspirations and enthusiasm of the eligible Cambodian voters will not
translate into electoral votes for the CNRP because of the COMPLETELY
RIGGED, BIASED National Election Committee and the SERIOUSLY
FLAWED registration of citizens. There are already problems with 3
million voters out of the 9.5 M registered voters.
IF NO reform of National Election Committee, it will be very DIFFICULT TO ACCEPT results of 2013 elections.
Here's a glimpse
into the problems:
NDI
Cambodia Voter Registry Audit 2013
The VRA provided a number of salient findings about the quality of the current voter registry, including:
• 82.9% of eligible citizens are registered voters. This represents a decline from the 2008 VRA, which showedan 87.9% registration rate. It represents a discrepancy with the National Election Committee’s(NEC) statistic that placed the number of registered voters is at 101.7% of the eligible population. (People-to-list test.)
• 10.8% of eligible citizens who thought they were registered were not found on the voter registry. Further more, 7.8% of eligible citizens were not on the voter registry even though they said they voted in the 2008 and/or 2012 elections. (People-to-list test.)
• 80.7% of names on the registry are valid and up-to-date, with 63.6% of names belonging to eligible voters living in that community and 17.1% of names belonging to eligible voters who lived temporarily in another location. The remaining 18.3% of names on the list were in valid, with 0.5% confirmed deceased, 7.4% permanently relocated, and 10.4% unknown to people in that community. (List-to-people test.)
• 9.4% of the people in the deletion list were incorrectly removed. This represents no progress since 2008, despite extra measures taken by the NEC and commune councils to prevent false deletions. (Deletion list-to-people test.)
• The accuracy of voters’ personal data (name, date of birth and address) in the registry declined compared with 2008, with only 63% of dates of birth and 86.4% of names matching information in the voters’ ID documents. In 2008, 78.97% of dates of birth and 87.88% of names matched. (Both tests.)
• 96.5% of respondents on the voter registry indicated they plan to vote in the July elections. However, 74% of respondents who were not found on the voter registry said they intend to vote.
These discrepancies revealed by the VRA may have implications on public confidence in the upcoming elections. It is possible that a large number of eligible citizens will arrive at the polls on election day only to discover that their names are not on the voter list because they were incorrectly deleted or believe they are registered when in fact they are not.
The percentage of eligible voters who have registered has decreased since 2008, even though the overall size of the registry has increased. The existence of unknown, deceased or relocated names on the registry could present an opportunity for electoral abuse or fraud on election day if proper oversight and safeguards are not in place. The list is less accurate than it was five years ago, potentially indicating a lack of progress on creating or distributing identity documents in Cambodia and inviting possible confusion at the polls for people to prove their identity.
To respond to these challenges, the VRA partners recommend the following measures to be implemented before the July 2013 elections in Cambodia:
• Due to the significant number of eligible citizens who believe they are registered but are not, the NEC should organize another period for voters to check their names on the voters list and register if needed.
• Given the rate of inaccuracy of voters’ personal data and the high percentage of unknown voters on the list, the NEC should provide access for independent monitors to observe the identification of voters by standing directly behind the polling station clerk and should provide monitors with access to the voter list used in the polling station.
• To avoid the possible misuse of invalid names on the list by ineligible people (under 18 years of age, non-citizens), the Ministry of Interior and NEC should prohibit further issuance of the Statement of Identity for Electoral Purposes.3
• Considering the high internal migration rate, NEC should open a mechanism to allow voters who are away from their electoral district at the time of the election to vote.
• To build public confidence in the voter registry, the NEC should allow independent observers and political parties to access the voter registry in its entirety in an analyzable format. This is common practice in established democracies and would allow the VRA to expand upon its findings and provide more comprehensive information. In the longer term, there is a dire need for fundamental electoral reform. Changes in the voter registration and list compilation process are necessary to ensure all eligible citizens have the right to vote, to prevent and remove invalid names on the registry, and to mitigate the potential for manipulation and fraud. The VRA partners recommend the following measures:
• The Government of Cambodia and the NEC should consider the adoption of a more efficient voter registration system that would better address the increasing rate of internal migration and would enfranchise unregistered citizens who may learn too late they are not on the list. This could include a change to a continuous or automatic registration system, which would allow for changes or corrections to the voter registry closer to election day.
• An impartial, unelected professional local body should be assigned or created to register voters, removing this responsibility from the elected and partisan commune councils.
• To increase the accuracy of the list and ease the registration process and voting for citizens, the Ministry of Interior should complete the civil registry and expedite the distribution of national ID cards to all citizens.
• The NEC should take steps to improve its data management systems at all levels of election administration.
This includes a more coordinated oversight of data collection and entry, the systematic use of Khmer spelling and fonts, and current and synchronized IT systems.
The VRA provided a number of salient findings about the quality of the current voter registry, including:
• 82.9% of eligible citizens are registered voters. This represents a decline from the 2008 VRA, which showedan 87.9% registration rate. It represents a discrepancy with the National Election Committee’s(NEC) statistic that placed the number of registered voters is at 101.7% of the eligible population. (People-to-list test.)
• 10.8% of eligible citizens who thought they were registered were not found on the voter registry. Further more, 7.8% of eligible citizens were not on the voter registry even though they said they voted in the 2008 and/or 2012 elections. (People-to-list test.)
• 80.7% of names on the registry are valid and up-to-date, with 63.6% of names belonging to eligible voters living in that community and 17.1% of names belonging to eligible voters who lived temporarily in another location. The remaining 18.3% of names on the list were in valid, with 0.5% confirmed deceased, 7.4% permanently relocated, and 10.4% unknown to people in that community. (List-to-people test.)
• 9.4% of the people in the deletion list were incorrectly removed. This represents no progress since 2008, despite extra measures taken by the NEC and commune councils to prevent false deletions. (Deletion list-to-people test.)
• The accuracy of voters’ personal data (name, date of birth and address) in the registry declined compared with 2008, with only 63% of dates of birth and 86.4% of names matching information in the voters’ ID documents. In 2008, 78.97% of dates of birth and 87.88% of names matched. (Both tests.)
• 96.5% of respondents on the voter registry indicated they plan to vote in the July elections. However, 74% of respondents who were not found on the voter registry said they intend to vote.
These discrepancies revealed by the VRA may have implications on public confidence in the upcoming elections. It is possible that a large number of eligible citizens will arrive at the polls on election day only to discover that their names are not on the voter list because they were incorrectly deleted or believe they are registered when in fact they are not.
The percentage of eligible voters who have registered has decreased since 2008, even though the overall size of the registry has increased. The existence of unknown, deceased or relocated names on the registry could present an opportunity for electoral abuse or fraud on election day if proper oversight and safeguards are not in place. The list is less accurate than it was five years ago, potentially indicating a lack of progress on creating or distributing identity documents in Cambodia and inviting possible confusion at the polls for people to prove their identity.
To respond to these challenges, the VRA partners recommend the following measures to be implemented before the July 2013 elections in Cambodia:
• Due to the significant number of eligible citizens who believe they are registered but are not, the NEC should organize another period for voters to check their names on the voters list and register if needed.
• Given the rate of inaccuracy of voters’ personal data and the high percentage of unknown voters on the list, the NEC should provide access for independent monitors to observe the identification of voters by standing directly behind the polling station clerk and should provide monitors with access to the voter list used in the polling station.
• To avoid the possible misuse of invalid names on the list by ineligible people (under 18 years of age, non-citizens), the Ministry of Interior and NEC should prohibit further issuance of the Statement of Identity for Electoral Purposes.3
• Considering the high internal migration rate, NEC should open a mechanism to allow voters who are away from their electoral district at the time of the election to vote.
• To build public confidence in the voter registry, the NEC should allow independent observers and political parties to access the voter registry in its entirety in an analyzable format. This is common practice in established democracies and would allow the VRA to expand upon its findings and provide more comprehensive information. In the longer term, there is a dire need for fundamental electoral reform. Changes in the voter registration and list compilation process are necessary to ensure all eligible citizens have the right to vote, to prevent and remove invalid names on the registry, and to mitigate the potential for manipulation and fraud. The VRA partners recommend the following measures:
• The Government of Cambodia and the NEC should consider the adoption of a more efficient voter registration system that would better address the increasing rate of internal migration and would enfranchise unregistered citizens who may learn too late they are not on the list. This could include a change to a continuous or automatic registration system, which would allow for changes or corrections to the voter registry closer to election day.
• An impartial, unelected professional local body should be assigned or created to register voters, removing this responsibility from the elected and partisan commune councils.
• To increase the accuracy of the list and ease the registration process and voting for citizens, the Ministry of Interior should complete the civil registry and expedite the distribution of national ID cards to all citizens.
• The NEC should take steps to improve its data management systems at all levels of election administration.
This includes a more coordinated oversight of data collection and entry, the systematic use of Khmer spelling and fonts, and current and synchronized IT systems.
4 comments:
Cheat all you want but everyone knows you cheat and you know that you cheat!
In the end, just read Mr. Rohrabacher's lips: ' Hun sen has to go'.
9:10 PM
It is not NEC, it is CPP
US and EU should press more stronger in reforming this CPP agency
Otherwise, election has not always reflected Democracy everyone needs
Cambodian people only rely on you US and EU, not double standard ASEAN, not theft China and not fascist Japan
Cambodia bloody need the hands of US and all democratic loving countries to save them on time, otherwise Cambodian people will be under the feet of Hun Sen, CPP for ever
Get lost yuen kon torb, all eyes ARE on Cambodia now and they ARE helping us now.
Khmer will get what Khmer is entitled to. UNITED WE STAND!!!.... WE EMPOWER OURSELVES WHEN WE'RE UNITED!!
Khmers love Khmers
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