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Electoral Laws, Administration and Management Review Report

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Electoral Laws, Administration and Management Review Report NEPAL Electoral Laws, Administration and Management Review Report /fli6«o lgjf{rg ko{j]If0f ;ldlt -lgof]s_ National Election Observation Committee (NEOC) Disclaimer: “This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are sole responsibility of the assessment team and/ or NEOC and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.” Electoral Laws, Administration And Management Review Report Editor : Dr. Gopal Krishna Siwakoti Advisors : Surya Prasad Shrestha Prof. Kapil Shrestha Bhawani Prasad Kharel Researchers : Dr. Chandra Kanta Gyawali Shree Krishna Subedi Rana Bahadur Thebe Special Contribution : Diana Garcia Alcubilla Jakub Smutny Translator : Rabin Subedi Assistance : Bikal Shrestha Deepika Naidu Narendra Ghimire Binod Kumar Vishwakarma Gita Bista Publisher : National Election Observation Committee (NEOC) Year of Publication : 2013 No. of Copies : 250 Copyright© : NEOC Financial Assistance : European Union (EU) Layout/design : Unigraphics, Tel.: 01 691 2152 Printing : Ganga Jamuna Press Pvt. Ltd., Tel.: 01 438 6934 Chairperson’s Note As credible election is the fundamental prerequisite of democracy and human rights, it is imperative that the elections should be conducted in a free, fair and independent manner. Elections should not be treated merely as a one-day fiesta of selecting the representatives. In the pursuit of ensuring the freedom of elections, it is equally important to conduct the study, investigation, analysis and implementation of different dimensions of the electoral process. Experiences around the world indicate the necessity of setting certain benchmarks to conduct a democratic election. It should also address the main issues like the selection of an appropriate electoral model, constitutional provisions, legal structures, structure of the management body, rights and obligations of the political parties and candidates, code of conduct and its compliance, appropriate mechanism to address claims and objections related to different aspects of electoral process, proper polling and effective counting process, effective election observation etc. In the present context reforms in the country’s election related constitutional and legal provisions have been widely felt which should be initiated by adopting an appropriate electoral model that can address the aforementioned issues of critical concern. In Nepal, because of an exceedingly large structure of the dissolved Constituent Assembly (CA) coupled with the performing of the dual task of legislative assembly the members were found to be more obsessed with the government formation activities than fulfilling their responsibility of constitution making. Although representation in the CA and/or the legislative parliament seemed much more inclusive compared to past ones, a sharp decline in the qualitative competence of the representatives of this body has been identified. Most of the representatives elected through the proportional representation (PR) system were found to be striving for mere recognition in their own respective constituencies. More often, majority of the PR nominated CA members were seen to be cozying up with the senior leaders of their respective political parties. Many feel that the ineffective participation of people’s representatives who were obviously lacking in quality and substance had largely rendered the whole CA and legislative parliament into a ‘prisoner of indecision’. Likewise, as the political parties have started to get polarized on the basis of ethnicity, religion and regionalism and other sectarian issues, its effects are seen in the national politics and legislature as well. This has contributed to the erosion in the leadership capability and influence of the national political parties. Even the functioning of almost all political parties is more focused towards accommodating the regional and ethnic aspirations instead of fulfilling the parties’ objectives and programs. It has, indeed, heightened the possibility of generating negative impacts on the national unity, integrity and social harmony. Such emerging ethnic and regional division could also be the outcome of the particular electoral model Nepal had chosen for the CA election. Many analysts also believe that the electoral model itself was not based on wider representation; instead, it was found to be more constrained by the ethnic and regional considerations. In this situation, now it has become imperative for the constitutional experts, political analysts and academic community to review the current electoral model and explore the possibility of its rectification. Only through such objective analysis Nepal can create the foundation of a better representation model in the new constitution which could promote political stability and democratic culture in the country. In short, some of the challenges in developing the Election Commission (EC) as an independent constitutional institution constitute the task like envisioning a representation model that guarantees direct adult franchise and candidacy, adopting of an impartial and scientific method in the constituency delimitation process, restraining misuse of financial resources and political power during the elections and developing a prompt legal system to address any dissatisfaction over the election process or the results itself etc. Similarly, it should be made mandatory for the government to provide assistance to the EC by making it available the necessary human and financial resources and other materials. As the intense competitiveness among the political parties being a complex aspect of the election, an effective communication system all over the country and a sense of security among everybody should be ensured. There should also be the constitutional and legal provisions which guarantee effective role of the officials of the EC and other government officials who are involved during the election in order to enable them to fulfill the responsibility properly. Hence, it is very important to enhance capacity among the EC and other government officials who are involved in election towards proper accomplishment of responsibilities as entrusted by the constitution and laws of the country. Otherwise, even a small mistake or error committed in course of managing elections can produce adverse reaction, mistrust and cynicism among the participating political parties and the entire electorate over the credibility of the electoral process itself. Therefore, ability to conduct election, which is a significant and sensitive job, is conducive to democratic development in the country. In pursuant with the aforementioned critical issues, NEOC with the help of electoral experts along with generous financial assistance from the European Union (EU), this document titled “Electoral Laws, Administration and Management” has been prepared in both Nepali and English languages. As such, we are highly indebted to all our friends who have contributed their valuable time and expertise to bring out this document. We hope that this document will be able to guide, to some extent, to make the upcoming elections in Nepal free, fair, transparent and credible. Surya Prasad Shrestha Chairperson Acronyms ANFREL Asian Network for Free Elections APF Armed Police Force BRIDGE Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Election CA Constituent Assembly CPN (M) Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) CPN (ML) Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist-Leninist) CSO Civil Society Organization CPP Combodian People’s Party CEDC Constituency Election Delimitation Commission CDO Chief District Officer CEDAW Convention for the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women DFID Department for International Development DEO District Election Officer DDR Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration DRE Direct Record Electronic ECN Election Commission of Nepal EU European Union EU EOM European Union Election Observation Mission EMB Election Monitoring Body EVM Electronic Voting Machine ESP Election Support Programme EDR Electoral Dispute Resolution ECHR European Convention on Human Rights ECOWAS Economic Community of West African States FPTP First-Past-the-Post GIS Geographic Information System GoN Government of Nepal GNDEM Global Network of Domestic Election Monitors IEC Information, Education and Communication IDP Internally Displaced Person IDEA Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance ICCPR International Covenant for Civil and Political Rights IFES International Foundation for Electoral Systems IFE Instituto Federal Electoral ICT Information and Communication Technology MP Member of Parliament MJF Madhesi Janadhikar Forum MPRF Madhesi People’s Rights Forum MMP Mixed Member Proportional NA Nepalese Army NEC National Election Commission NGO Non-Governmental Organization NCP Nepali Congress Party NCP-D Nepali Congress Party-Democratic NDI National Democratic Institute for International Affairs NEOC National Election Observation Committee NC Nepali Congress NP Nepal Police NSP (A) Nepal Sadbhavana Party (Anandidevi) NWPP Nepal Workers and Peasants’ Party OHCHR Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights OSCE Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe ODIHR Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights OAS Organization of American States ODIHR Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights OMR Optical Mark Recognition OCR Optical Character Recognition PLA People’s Liberation Army (Maoist) PR Proportional Representation RRC Regional Resource Centre
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