Democracy development techniques such as international election monitoring have increasingly become commonplace. Monitors are sent to far off locations to scrutinize the electoral processes and determine whether or not they have met the free and fair standards as established by their mandates. The term free and fair however, has become a catchphrase amongst many of those involved in the election monitoring and democracy development fields. The phrase is often interpreted loosely and is rarely clearly defined. Despite the recognition of the terms often differing interpretations, it remains a commonly used standard. The 2005 Ethiopian Elections demonstrate that free and fair, when interpreted differently by international electoral observers, can have consequential results. <p>The thesis provides a political analysis of the Carter Centers and European Unions international election monitoring final reports of the 2005 Ethiopian elections. Following the 2005 Ethiopian elections the Carter Centers and the European Unions electoral observation reports became highly politicized. In the post election period, the two organizations came to different conclusions in regards to the validity of the electoral process. At the core of these differences were the organizations differing conceptions of what constitutes free and fair electoral practices. In the post election period the European Unions and Carter Centers reports have been pitted against one and other as those concerned with the election results seek to make sense of the reports. <p>This thesis is significant because it asks relevant questions about the consequences of differing understandings of free and fair. The thesis seeks to provide insight into international election monitoring and provide recommendations to improve the process.

Democracy development techniques such as international election monitoring have increasingly become commonplace. Monitors are sent to far off locations to scrutinize the electoral processes and determine whether or not they have met the free and fair standards as established by their mandates. The term free and fair however, has become a catchphrase amongst many of those involved in the election monitoring and democracy development fields. The phrase is often interpreted loosely and is rarely clearly defined. Despite the recognition of the terms often differing interpretations, it remains a commonly used standard. The 2005 Ethiopian Elections demonstrate that free and fair, when interpreted differently by international electoral observers, can have consequential results. <p>The thesis provides a political analysis of the Carter Centers and European Unions international election monitoring final reports of the 2005 Ethiopian elections. Following the 2005 Ethiopian elections the Carter Centers and the European Unions electoral observation reports became highly politicized. In the post election period, the two organizations came to different conclusions in regards to the validity of the electoral process. At the core of these differences were the organizations differing conceptions of what constitutes free and fair electoral practices. In the post election period the European Unions and Carter Centers reports have been pitted against one and other as those concerned with the election results seek to make sense of the reports. <p>This thesis is significant because it asks relevant questions about the consequences of differing understandings of free and fair. The thesis seeks to provide insight into international election monitoring and provide recommendations to improve the process.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, San Diego, 2006. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed June 21, 2006). Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 261-277).

Depuis la fin de la Guerre froide, l'observation internationale des élections a connu une croissance exponentielle à travers le monde et en particulier au sein de la région formée par les 56 états participants de l'Organisation pour la Sécurité et la Coopération en Europe. En raison de l'intervention concomitante d'acteurs multiples et hétérogènes, cette activité est caractérisée par le développement de diverses procédures de coopération interinstitutionnelle mais des efforts restent à fournir afin de toujours garantir la cohérence du message délivré. Le contrôle opéré se fonde sur une profusion d'engagements internationaux de nature juridique et politique qui constituent un véritable droit international électoral, constamment enrichi par la jurisprudence dynamique de la Cour européenne des droits de l'Homme. Bien que la méthodologie sur laquelle repose les évaluations auxquelles procèdent les observateurs ait acquis une fiabilité importante et que ceux-ci parviennent dans la majorité des cas à éviter l'écueil d'une politisation des conclusions, les retombées des missions d'observation électorale restent aléatoires, nuisant à l'effectivité du système de contrôle dans son ensemble. De nombreux dispositifs de suivi des recommandations existent, qu'ils soient technique, politique ou juridictionnel, mais leur mise en œuvre révèle trop souvent un manque de rigueur. Au-delà, si le mécanisme de conditionnalité démocratique instaurée par l'Union européenne permet de relayer efficacement les conclusions des observateurs électoraux dans le cadre de la procédure d'adhésion, il souffre d'une application inconsistante dans le champ de la Politique européenne de voisinage. Il s'ensuit une influence marginale de l'observation électorale internationale sur les Etats autoritaires de la région de l'OSCE. / Since the end of the Cold War, international election observation has grown exponentially worldwide and especially within the region formed by the 56 participating States of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Due to the concomitant action of multiple and heterogeneous actors, this activity is characterized by the development of various procedures for inter-institutional cooperation but efforts are still needed in order to always ensure the consistency of the message delivered. The control operated is based on a wealth of international legal and political commitments which constitute a genuine international electoral law, constantly enriched by the dynamic jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. The methodology underlying the assessments made by the observers has acquired a high reliability and these succeed in most cases to avoid the trap of politicized findings. However, the impact of electoral observation missions remains unequal, undermining the effectiveness of the whole control mechanism. Many devices, whether technical, political or judicial, exist for the follow-up of recommendations, but their implementation often reveals a lack of rigor. In addition, if the mechanism of democratic conditionality established by the European Union can effectively relay the findings of election observers in the context of the accession procedure, it suffers from an inconsistent application in the field of European Neighbourhood Policy. It follows a marginal influence of international election observation on authoritarian states of the OSCE area.

Today Namibia is at the crossroads of its independence. The agony of death and destruction that the Namibians have endured for the past 105 years of colonial oppression is about to come to an end and freedom is in sight. The process of transition to independence has already started. On 1 November 1989, the Namibian people will exercise their long-denied right to self-determination by electing their own leaders who. by virtue of being elected by the masses will have the sovereign right to draft the constitution of independent Namibia. This will bring about a new political and socio-economic order. The task before the Namibian people is to seize this historic opportunity and ensure that they join hands to safeguard the revolutionary gains we have made in bringing our country to the threshold of independence. Seizing this opportunity means, first, to register as a voter, and second, to vote and send to the Constituent Assembly men. and women with a revolutionary will, honourable record, vision for a better future, integrity, experience and proven ability to fight for the interests of the broad masses of the Namibian people. Such men and women are to be found in SWAPO. SWAPO has stood tall in the face of formidable odds over the last twenty-nine years of its struggle to free Namibia. Because of this fact. SWAPO had participated in the formulation of Resolution 435 and fought bravely for the last 11 years for its implementation. The motivating force behind this struggle has always been to guarantee that power is given to the Namibian people to decide the future of our country' through free and fair elections. Now that Resolution 435 is being implemented, the Central Committee of SWAPO has the honour to place before the people of Namibia its concrete programme of action in the form of SWAPO’s policy positions on a broad spectrum of political, economic, social and cultural issues. Together, these policy'positions form SWAPO's Election Manifesto. / sponsored by the Centre for Development Studies, University of the Western Cape & the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, November 6-16, 1991

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of International Relations in the Faculty of Humanities, Department of International Relations / The electoral process in African conflict ridden societies has largely been synonymous with violence since the inauguration of democratic experiments in the cold war aftermath. The transition to democracy including the role of elections in the process of building democracy has been confronted with challenges and the fate of these nations remained vulnerable. As a remedy to these challenges, external and internal forces have continually encouraged the leaders of the newly multiparty states to test their political legitimacy through inviting the Internatitonal election monitors. As a consequence, international election observation has become widely accepted around the world and is assumed to play an important role in the electoral processes. The presence of these agencies is believed to instil confidence in the domestic people and deter electoral fraud. The Kenyan case shall assess the election trends in 2007-2013 and the performance of election monitors within the international efforts to promote democracy in Africa. The issues they put across, their reports, criticisms and what they prescribed, will be useful in assessing their performance and measuring their impact on democratic governance in Kenya. / XL2018

Thesis advisor: David A. Deese / Throughout the last fifteen years, the phenomenon of International Election Monitoring (IEM) has become increasingly widespread. IEM works to enhance the credibility and transparency of elections; over time, as the outcome of one election (and the success of IEM) conditions the electoral context of future elections, IEM can encourage internal political reform. In a number of states, particularly in Latin America, monitoring efforts have succeeded in steadily improving domestic political conditions and facilitating democratic consolidation. Yet, IEM effectiveness is conditioned not only by the characteristics of the monitoring groups involved, but also by the domestic context of a state. Hence, the unique structural conditions in Sub-Saharan Africa present distinct challenges and opportunities for IEM. This thesis investigates the relationship between IEM and internal political reform in four Sub-Saharan African states. While IEM can encourage the progress of reform through a feedback mechanism, the extent of such reforms is greatly affected not only by domestic structural conditions, but by additional and often overlooked intervening variables. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2007. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: International Studies. / Discipline: College Honors Program.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2004. / Supervisor: Daron Shaw. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available from UMI.

The aim of this study was to establish whether the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) performed according to its mandate in ensuring a fair broadcast coverage of all political parties that participated in the 2014 national general election. The study was undertaken as a result of the complaints by political parties who accused the SABC of bias during the election. The study focused on two SABC radio stations, namely SAFM and UKHOZI FM. In executing the research, particular attention was paid to the coverage of political party manifestos, town hall election debates and radio interviews. The study was written utilising the theoretical paradigm of Social Responsibility Theory, as this is largely deemed the most ethical guide in testing South African journalism. The research was conducted in accordance with the Independent Complaints Authority of South Africa (ICASA) regulations that govern broadcast media during elections. The second part of the analysis deconstructed the SABC’s media coverage of the 2014 election through Media Monitoring Africa – a non-profit organisation that monitors and reports on media coverage of elections, whilst simultaneously taking ICASA stipulated guidelines into account. The MMA and ICASA equipped the study with reports which were compiled after an intense monitoring of SABC’s coverage of the 2014 election. Through the analysis of political parties’ accessibility to the election broadcast programmes on SABC platforms, the study concluded that although there were errors, the SABC treated all parties fairly during the 2014 general elections. The study also found that poor corporate governance at the SABC did not impact directly on the public broadcaster’s ability to deliver fair election broadcasting. By conforming to the social responsibility role that calls for high professional conduct, fairness and objectivity as expected in the public broadcaster, this study found that the SABC was committed to a fair coverage of the 2014 election.

In a democracy it is the citizens who choose their leaders. Through elections, the people constitute government to preside over public affairs. However, in several African countries the quality of the elections has been vitiated by fraud, incompetence, unequal playing field and violence. Part of the problem is historical. Within the first decade of attaining independence in the 1950s and 1960s, many African regimes rapidly descended into autocracy and many countries formally recognised one-party regimes. Despite many one-party regimes having been abolished after the democratisation wave of the late 1980s and early 1990s, challenges of holding free and fair elections persist. Several elections held since this democratic wave were generally not considered by independent observers as free and fair. Indeed Africa has become well known for flawed elections, such as was the case in the 2007 elections in Kenya, the 2008 elections in Zimbabwe and the 2010 elections in Ivory Coast. Due to the stifled democratic climate, where even elections had a predetermined outcome, coups became a common and regular method of showing discontent or removing government. While the phenomenon of problematic elections is going on, at the continental level, Africa seems to be making renewed commitment towards democratic governance. With the transformation of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) into the African Union (AU) through the adoption of the Constitutive Act of the African Union in 2000, the AU, inter alia, committed to promoting “democratic principles and institutions, popular participation and good governance” and seems determined to depart from the legacy of poor governance. It is in view of the foregoing background that this research sought to investigate the challenges the judiciary in Africa has faced in adjudicating presidential election disputes. And, in light of the growing trend towards establishing common African democratic standards and seeking collective solutions, the research also sought to explore the viability of establishing a continental supranational mechanism for resolving disputed presidential elections through adjudication. / Public, Constitutional and International Law / LLD