Carelessness in politics is a source of election dispute

 

ឥរិយាបថ​មិន​យក​ចិត្ត​ទុកដាក់​នឹង​នយោបាយ​ ជា​ប្រភព​នៃ​ជម្លោះ​បោះឆ្នោត

សៅរ៍ 08 កញ្ញា 2012
ដោយ ប៉ែន បូណា
Radio France Internationale

ដំណើរការ​ចុះឈ្មោះ និង​ពិនិត្យ​ឈ្មោះ​បោះឆ្នោត​ឆ្នាំ ២០១២ បាន​ឈានដល់​សប្តាហ៍​ទី២​ហើយ។ ទាំង​គណៈកម្មាធិការ​ជាតិ​រៀបចំ​បោះឆ្នោត ទាំង​រដ្ឋាភិបាល គណបក្សនយោបាយ និង​សង្គម​ស៊ីវិល សុទ្ធតែ​អំពាវនាវ​ឲ្យ​ប្រជាពលរដ្ឋ​គ្រប់​គ្នា​ដែល​គ្រប់​អាយុ​បោះឆ្នោត​ទៅ​ពិនិត្យ ឈ្មោះ និង​ចុះឈ្មោះ​ឲ្យ​បាន​គ្រប់គ្នា។

ទោះជា​យ៉ាងនេះ​ក៏ដោយ មាន​មនុស្ស​ជាច្រើន​នៅតែ​គ្មាន​ឈ្មោះ​ក្នុង​បញ្ជី​បោះឆ្នោត​ដដែល។

តើ​ហេតុអ្វី​បាន​ជា​ដូច្នេះ? ហើយ​តើ​បញ្ហា​នេះ​គួរ​ក្លាយជា​ជម្លោះ​នយោបាយ​ដែរ ឬទេ ?

ជា​រៀងរាល់​ការបោះឆ្នោតម្តងៗ បញ្ជី​ឈ្មោះ​អ្នកបោះឆ្នោត​តែង​ក្លាយជា​ជម្លោះ​នយោបាយ​ដ៏​ក្តៅ​គ​គុក។ មាន​មនុស្ស​ជាច្រើន​គ្មាន​ឈ្មោះ​ក្នុង​បញ្ជី ខ្លះទៀត​មានឈ្មោះ​តែ​វង្វេង​ការិយាល័យ​រក​កន្លែង​បោះឆ្នោត​មិនឃើញ អ្នកខ្លះ​មានឈ្មោះ​តែ​មិន​ទៅ​បោះឆ្នោត។ បញ្ហាដដែលៗនេះ​នៅ​តែ​បន្ត​កើតឡើង​មិនទាន់​ចប់។ គណបក្សប្រឆាំង និង​សង្គម​ស៊ីវិល​មួយចំនួន​បាន​ស្តី​បន្ទោស​​គណៈកម្មាធិការ​ជាតិ​រៀបចំ​ការបោះឆ្នោត (ឝ.ជ.ប) ថា​បាន​បង្ក​ការលំបាក​ដល់​ការចុះឈ្មោះ និង​ពិនិត្យ​បញ្ជី​ឈ្មោះ។ អ្នកខ្លះ​ទៀត​បាន​ស្តីបន្ទោស​អាជ្ញាធរ​មូលដ្ឋាន​ថា លម្អៀង​ទៅរក​គណបក្សកាន់អំណាច​ហើយ​បាន​ព្យាយាម​រារាំង​អ្នកគាំទ្រ​គណបក្សប្រឆាំង​មិន​ឲ្យ​ទៅ​បោះឆ្នោត។

Inaccurate voting lists give watchdog pause

Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Meas Sokchea
The Phnom Penh Post

An election monitoring group yesterday claimed that people were failing to vote because their names were not included on voter lists at polling stations.

Speaking at a Phnom Penh forum held by civil society groups and political parties, Koul Panha, executive director of election monitoring group Comfrel, said that the National Election Committee must ensure that voters’ names were not left off the list for upcoming commune elections in June.

“They arrive at the polling station and cannot find their name, so they return home,” he said.

“The loss of voters’ names is because of technical mistakes or the changing of someone’s name.”

Koul Panha said the Ministry of Interior must issue permanent identification cards and send that information to the NEC, and the NEC must guarantee that someone with an ID card is able to vote.

Election Monitor Finds Irregularities in Registration - ខុមហ្វ្រែល​រក​ឃើញ​ភាព​មិន​ប្រក្រតី​ក្នុង​ដំណើរការ​ចុះ​ឈ្មោះ​អ្នក​បោះឆ្នោត

Wednesday, 26 October 2011
Chun Sakada, VOA Khmer | Phnom Penh

“We think there will be duplicate names at two sites or up to three sties.”

The Committee for Free and Fair Elections said Wednesday it had noted irregularities in the voter registration process that ended this month.

In a report released Wednesday, Comfrel said it found irregularities in the registration process itself and in the quality of registration lists. The group also noted a lack of confidence among non-ruling parties.

Voter registration took place between Sept. 1 and Oct. 15 in most communes, except where it was extended due to flooding, as Cambodia prepares for local commune elections next year.

“We have concerns about the quality of voter lists,” Koul Panha, Comfrel’s executive director, told reporters. “We think there will be duplicate names at two sites or up to three sties.”

Comfrel said it found that commune clerks in 72 of 1,621 communes had failed to respect registration hours and had either come to work late, left early or not shown up at all.

Youth denied their constitutional rights in Phnom Penh

Register to Vote: Newsletter Two

Monday 12 September 2011

Youth denied their constitutional rights in Phnom Penh

Every capable Cambodian citizen 18 years or older has the right to vote in elections. This is ensured in our constitution.

However, Cambodian youth have a challenge when taking voter registration information door-to-door to their peers, in the city of Phnom Penh on the 2nd week of the registration period. Local commune chiefs, district officials trailed by police prevented the youth and Mu Sochua of the Sam Rainsy party, an elected MP from providing information to voters, accusing them of unlawful activities and disturbing peace and security in the commune.

SRP youth president Soung Sophoan handing out voter information cards at the pagoda.

Sophoan and MP Mu Sochua confronted by local authorities minutes later for their actions.

Voter information cards were snatched and confiscated by the local authorities who went door to door, creating an atmosphere of fear. Such a violation of voters' rights, including right to information and political rights is part of the fear tactics of the ruling party through the use of local officials.

The Cambodia Daily newspaper reported on the 13th September 2011, “There were almost as many authorities as SRP members, which came in handy when the information card distribution began because it meant the authorities could grab back the cards as quickly as they were distributed to the public”.

A fan?  No, a member of the local authority taking pictures in an act of intimidation and harassment. He was part of the authority convoy trailing the party youth.

Voter registration is the first step to guaranty protection of voters' right to vote. The EU Electoral Observation Mission noted in its 2008 general election report that 19 per cent of polling stations reported voters complaints due to errors on the register on election-day. Domestic observers concurred with this finding, stating in their reports that incorrect voter registration was one of the key problems of the 2008 election process.

The Sam Rainsy Party is taking no chances by waiting for electoral reforms to take place. During the 45-day registration period, the SRP youth and all the party machinery is being used nationwide to ensure that the newly illegible voters have their right to vote.

The youth will not be intimidated and they continue to exercise their constitutional right to hand out the voter information cards

Training youth to go door-to-door is a must and a good exercise to train our youth to enter the field of politics and to defend our people's political rights. Any form of threat and intimidation must be stopped in order to ensure free and fair elections.

Another 28 days to go!

Voter Registration Remains Complicated for Citizens: Expert

An election staff helps a Cambodian elderly woman to cast her ballot at a polling station in Kampong Cham province, north of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Sunday, July 27, 2008. (Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Sok Khemara, VOA khmer
Washington, D.C Friday, 10 September 2010

“Some countries apply this system, a system where people do not have the obligation to register.”

A Cambodia elections expert says voter registration remains complicated for everyday citizens and puts more burden on them than the state.

Cambodia also lacks a single database for the population, further complicating the process, said Koul Panha, director of the Committee for Free and Fair Elections, as a guest on “Hello VOA” Thursday.

“Some countries apply this system, a system where people do not have the obligation to register,” he said. “They organize a system to check the database and the age of people in order to place their names on a voting list” and inform them where they will vote, he said.

“But Cambodia still puts the obligation on people who have turned 18 to register,” he said.

The National Election Committee announced Thursday it hoped to register some 300,000 new voters between October and the end of the year, adding to the 8.3 million voters already registered, following an annual voter survey.

“Our registration is done every year,” Koul Panha said. “Those who are eligible to register and those who have no name on the register will have to register to vote.” That also includes people who have changed their address or have been taken off the register.

However, in other countries a database, birth certificate and other vital records clearly define voters, he said.

Cambodia’s system has led to problems in the past, he said.

In the 2008 national election, nearly 400,000 voters have problems, where they either did not see their names on the voter register or were incorrectly registered, leading to disillusionment and the loss of votes, he said.

Meanwhile, one agency’s list may differ from another.

“The NEC has their own database, and the Ministry of Interior, they have their own database, and we don’t define a clear identification of one individual,” he said. “That has caused voter lists of poor quality and made names wrong, or lost, and then people don’t get their right to vote.”

Cambodia is preparing for local-level commune council elections in 2012, with parliamentary elections the following year. Some election experts have called for the elimination of the old voter register and a creation a new, more credible list.

Koul Panha said people could also have their own identification number to avoid confusion or names dropped from the register.

NEC Claims High Voter Registration, as Critics Chide Process

Chiep Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
23 October 2007

Nearly 900,000 new voters registered for upcoming national elections, the government committee in charge said Tuesday, claiming an increase over expectations of 30 percent.

But critics say the numbers are unreliable, due to numerous irregularities observed during registration, as Cambodia gears up for national parliamentary elections in July 2008.

National Election Committee Secretary-General Tep Nitha said Thursday he had expected about 680,000 new voters to register.

Registration lists will be displayed across the country from Oct. 25 to Nov. 30, allowing voters to amend the lists, correct name spelling, or transfer their voting rights from one administrative commune to another, he said.

He reminded voters that if they have moved from one commune to another, they must register at their new commune.

NEC's preliminary results were calculated through Oct. 20, from 1,612 of the country's 1,621 communes. The estimated number of people who had not registered was 682,459. However, those registered, about 893,131, equalled 130.87 percent of those predicted, the NEC said.

Group Finds Flaws in Registration Process, Voter Lists

Sok Khemara, VOA Khmer
Washington
04 October 2007

The voter registration process for next year's national election contains serious flaws, a democracy group has found.

The process has come under fire in recent weeks, as a deadline nears for eligible voters to register and for voters who believe they were removed from lists to get back on them.

Critics have charged the process is skewed in favor of the Cambodian People's Party, with tens of thousands of names of opposition supporters removed from lists and the burden to rectify those lists in the hands of laymen voters.

"Voters turned out less because of voter lists irregularities," Ly Sothearayuth, a senior program officer for the National Democratic Institute, said Thursday.

NDI recently completed a survey of 385 communes, where they found more than 11 percent of eligible voters had not registered.

The survey found that 20 percent of registered voters had not been given a critical identification card, Ly Sothearayuth said, as a guest on "Hello VOA."

The National Election Committee has said the voter lists needed cleaned of illegible voters—such as the deceased—and that voters have until Oct. 20 to ensure their names are posted.

But now the NEC should be focusing on getting as many people voting as possible, Ly Sothearayuth said. The burden should not be on the people, he added.

Around 7 million people will be legible to vote in the national parliamentary elections, set for July next year.