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Elections on Trial Project: Inaugural Meeting of the Europe and Eurasia Electoral Jurisprudence Working Group
IFES is working to establish peer networks in Europe and Eurasia and Africa, supported by the United States Agency for International Development. Regional knowledge exchange allows judges and election commissioners to discuss best practices and share comparative examples of how other countries deal with specific categories of complaints and disputes.
Publication
Report/Paper
Lithuania: Money and Politics Case Study
Lithuania has rapidly developed both politically and economically since emerging from the Soviet Union in 1991. While the country has built a functioning parliamentary system of government, has become a member of NATO, and is on the verge of joining the European Union, it still faces many problems associated with the many consolidating democracies around the world. As in all democracies, populations need to trust that those they elect will represent their interests. Problems such as corruption, weaknesses in laws concerning the political financing, and unaccounted for political income and expenditures threaten the credibility of the process and hinder the speed at which democracy is consolidated. Additionally, Lithuania lacks the high level of vibrant debate about the issue of political financing among scholars, journalists and civil society bodies required to promote meaningful reform. Recognizing this, Lithuania has developed an independent Central Electoral Committee (CEC) and adopted laws requiring detailed and public disclosure of political finance accounts. Prior to conducting Money and Politics programming in Lithuania, the CEC had made a demonstrable interest in making information public. While scanning summary report of accounts and placing them on the internet, the user could not search, not easily compare and analyze the information. Interested parties were required to make an appointment to view more detailed, paper-based information. Further, while the Tax Authorities are required to audit final political party reports, enforcement is widely considered to be weak. Few, if any, cases of political finance violations have been forwarded and investigated, not to mention prosecuted. By addressing the difficult issues surrounding political finance with the support of IFES in 2002 and 2003, Lithuania is emerging as a model for other consolidating democracy to follow. Significant areas remain to be addressed. While Lithuania has taken concrete steps to reform political finance legislation, open political finance information to public scrutiny and oversight, and encourage debate, further efforts are required to actively enforce laws and regulations and raise the level of debate among the various governmental, legislative, and civil society groups. By addressing these areas, Lithuania has the potential for being an example of best practices while making local expertise and resources to other countries undergoing similar reforms.
December 31, 2002
Publication
Report/Paper
Seminar on the Independence of Electoral Justice in Panama: Final Report
This report summarizes IFES’ findings from the (IFES initiated) Seminar on the Independence of Electoral Justice in Panama from December 2001. The purpose of the seminar was to share information on electoral justice and recommend improvements to the electoral justice process.
March 19, 2001
Publication
Report/Paper
Panama: Elecciones Generales: Informe Final de Observacion Electoral
May 31, 1999
Publication
Report/Paper
Panama: General Elections, IFES Election Observation Final Report
This report is issued as a record of the observations made by the IFES mission from the 1999 Panamanian elections. It is also a presentation of a series of technical suggestions for the consideration of the Panamanian government in the organization and facilitation of future elections.
May 31, 1999
Election Material
Civic Education Material
Prohibiciones, delitos, faltas electorales y faltas Administrativas
“Prohibitions, Crimes, Electoral and Administrative Offenses” is an instructive brochure, available in Spanish, issued in 1999 by the Electoral Tribunal of Panama in lead up to the May 2, 1999 Panamanian General Elections. The brochure lists and describes the electoral and administrative crimes that could be committed during the entire electoral process and makes reference to the specific articles in the Electoral Code that deal with these infractions.
Election Material
Civic Education Material
Elecciones
“Elections” is an informative booklet, available in Spanish, issued in 1999 by the Electoral Tribunal of Panama in lead up to the May 2, 1999 Panamanian General Elections. The booklet contains some information and statistics on previous elections, contains the maps and number of voters in the different districts of Panama, and a message from the President of the Electoral Tribunal describing the role of the Tribunal in the past and upcoming elections. Additionally, the booklet lists the name of the political parties participating in the elections and samples of the electoral ballots.
Election Material
Civic Education Material
Etica Electoral
“Electoral Ethics” is a personal assertion, available in Spanish, issued in 1998 by Dennis Allen Frias, vice-president of the Electoral Tribunal of Panama, in lead up to the August 30, 1998 National Referendum. The statement is meant to address the importance of the Electoral Tribunal of Panama in exercising its election-related attributes. The statement describes the responsibilities of the Electoral Tribunal since 1990 and the changes it underwent since then.