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I. IntroductionOne of the most critical ways that individuals can influence governmental decision-making is through voting. Voting is a formal expression of preference for a candidate for office or for a proposed resolution of an issue. Voting generally takes place in the context of a large-scale national or regional election, however, local and small-scale community elections can be just as critical to individual participation in government. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted unanimously by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948, recognizes the integral role that transparent and open elections play in ensuring the fundamental right to participatory government. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Article 21 states: Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his/her country, directly or through freely chosen representatives. Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country. The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot or by equivalent free voting procedures. The role that periodic, free elections play in ensuring respect for political rights also is enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, the Charter of the Organization of American States, the African (Banjul) Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and many other international human rights documents.
II. Rights at StakeArticle 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is the key international guarantee of voting rights and free elections, but its provisions are strongly related to other articles, specifically Article 2 (see below). The ICCPR also includes guarantees of freedom of expression (Article 19), assembly (Article 21), association (Article 22), and non-discrimination (Article 26). ICCPR, Article 25: Every citizen shall have the right and the opportunity, without any of the distinctions mentioned in Article 2 and without unreasonable restrictions: (a) To take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen representatives;(b) To vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of the will of the electors; (c) To have access, on general terms of equality, to public service in his country.ICCPR, Article 2, paragraph 1: Each State Party to the present Covenant undertakes to respect and to ensure to all individuals within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction the rights recognized in the present Covenant, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
Another example is the disenfranchisement of those who have been convicted of certain crimes. The following example is an excerpt from a 1998 report by Human Rights Watch’s Sentencing Project. Today, [in the United States] all mentally competent adults have the right to vote with only one exception: convicted criminal offenders. In forty-six states and the District of Columbia, criminal disenfranchisement laws deny the vote to all convicted adults in prison. Thirty-two states also disenfranchise felons on parole; twenty-nine disenfranchise those on probation. And, due to laws that may be unique in the world, in fourteen states even ex-offenders who have fully served their sentences remain barred for life from voting. [T]he scale of [disenfranchisement laws] in the United States is unparalleled: an estimated 3.9 million U.S. citizens are disenfranchised, including over one million who have fully completed their sentences. The racial impact of disenfranchisement laws is particularly egregious. Thirteen percent of African American men—1.4 million—are disenfranchised, representing just over one-third (36 percent) of the total disenfranchised population. Individuals around the world continue to struggle for full enforcement of the ICCPR’s Article 25. Central to this struggle are the many international human rights documents that mirror the principles of Article 25. III. International and Regional Instruments of ProtectionInternational legal instruments take the form of a treaty (such as agreement, convention, protocol) that may be binding on Contracting States. When negotiations are completed, the text of a treaty is established as authentic and definitive and is “signed” by the representatives of states. There are various means by which a state expresses its consent to be bound by a treaty. The most common are ratification or accession. A new treaty is “ratified” by those states that have negotiated the instrument. A state that has not participated in the negotiations may, at a later stage, “accede” to the treaty. When a state ratifies or accedes to a treaty, the state may make reservations to one or more articles of the treaty, unless the treaty prohibits reservations. Reservations may normally be withdrawn at any time. In some countries, international treaties take precedence over national law; in others, a specific law may be required to give an international treaty effect. Practically all states that have ratified or acceded to an international treaty must issue decrees, amend existing laws or introduce new legislation in order for the treaty to be fully effective on the national territory. UNITED NATIONS International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1976) COUNCIL OF EUROPE This document is enforced by the European Court of Human Rights (http://www.echr.coe.int ) and pursuant to Article 3 of Protocol I of the Convention Parties undertake to hold free elections at reasonable intervals by secret ballot “under conditions which will ensure the free expression of the opinion of the people in the choice of the legislature.” Articles 9, 10, and 11 of this Convention also ensure the right to freedom of thought, the right to freedom of expression, and the right to freedom of peaceful assembly. ORGANISATION FOR SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE) EUROPEAN UNION (EU) ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES (OAS) Inter-American Convention on the Granting of Political Rights to Women (entered into force 1954) Article 23 of the American Convention on Human Rights and Article 20 of the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man guarantee the right of citizens to vote and be elected in genuine periodic elections. The Charter of the Organization of American States (OAS) establishes in its preamble, ”representative democracy is an indispensable condition for the stability, peace and development of the region," and establishes that one of its purposes is "to promote and consolidate representative democracy, with due respect for the principle of non-intervention.” In 1991 the General Assembly of the Organization of American States established a process by which the OAS will take action if the democratic order is interrupted in any member country. In 1992 the Protocol of Washington, (in ratification), strengthened the mechanisms for defending democracy. AFRICAN UNION (Formerly Organization of African Unity) IV. Protection and Service AgenciesFree and fair elections play a critical role in ensuring voting rights. International and regional governmental groups, along with non-governmental organizations, work around the world to observe and monitor human rights related to elections processes. Several international and regional documents have outlined international standards for elections. United Nations – The Committee on Human Rights, a UN appointed body of human rights experts, outlined international elections standards in 1996 in a General Comment on ICCPR Article 25. According to the committee, Article 25’s mandates should be considered in light of the following: Protecting the right of every citizen to take part in the conduct of public affairs, the right to vote and to be elected. The right of peoples to self-determination. Protecting the rights of every citizen. Any restrictions on voting should be based on objective and reasonable criteriaThe constitution and other laws should establish the allocation of powers and the means by which individual citizens exercise the right to participate in the conduct of public affairs. Political participation is supported by ensuring freedom of expression, assembly and association.The right to vote in elections and referenda must be established by law. Persons entitled to vote have a free choice of candidates. Conditions relating to nomination dates, fees or deposits should be reasonable and not discriminatory.Elections must be conducted fairly and freely on a periodic basis within a framework of laws guaranteeing the effective exercise of voting rights. The United Nations conducts election monitoring activities around the world, primarily in fragile democracies of in post-war and nation-building contexts. For example, the UN and OSCE were heavily involved in election monitoring in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where they provided training for election monitors and provided police support on election day. UN monitoring activities depend on the needs evident in the particular national context, but can include all of the following: the pre-election preparations and campaign period the electoral administration the registration voter education and information the media the vote the count the results and follow-up.
The OAS also provides technical assistance to member states trying to resolve problems related to the organization and administration of electoral processes. In this realm, their goal is to assist member states to make national electoral entities more effective, legitimate, respected, and stable. The OAS gives information to interested parties related to governance and democracy, via their website, newsletters, conferences, seminars, and workshops. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe – The OSCE includes fifty-five member states from Europe, Central Asia and North America and has an election monitoring unit called the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). The ODIHR deploys election monitoring missions to participating member states. To do this the ODIHR field teams of experts to monitor the electoral process from beginning to end – in the year 2000, ODHIR monitored 15 elections in participating countries. After completing its monitoring, ODIHR presents a report on its observations and will provide technical assistance to help implement any recommendations contained in its report. European Union – In recent years, European Union electoral missions have grown in frequency whether under the auspices of the Common Foreign and Security Policy or within its development cooperation programs. Often, the EU has worked in cooperation with the OSCE or the UN. In the last three years, missions were sent to 15 countries all over the world, ranging from Zimbabwe to Peru to Cambodia. V. Advocacy, Educational and Training MaterialsInstitutions The Carter Center Center for Voting and Democracy Federal Election Commission (FEC) Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA) International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) International Foundation for Election Services (IFES) League of Women Voters National Democratic Institute – Election and Political Processes National Voting Rights Institute Rock the Vote Books and resources Administration and Cost of Elections Project Democracy and Human Rights Resources Human Rights and Elections, 1994 ODIHR Election Observation Handbook, Fourth Edition, April 1999 Project Vote Smart Case Studies: Venezuela Case Study – Venezuela battles a strong military power in their government as it tries to give more rights to the people. Zimbabwe – The ruling president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe, won the 2002 elections amidst accusations of pre-election violence. VI. Other Human Rights ResourcesHuman Rights – A short history of Human Rights. Human Rights Education Associates - International non-governmental organization that supports human rights learning; the training of activists and professionals; the development of educational materials and programming; and community-building through on-line technologies. University of Minnesota Human Rights Center – Has a vast range of documents and links to human rights resources. It includes the University of Minnesota’s Human Rights Library.
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