51 Cuadernos De

SERIE CUADERNOS DE CAPEL CUADERNOS DE 51 CAPEL Elections, democracy, and human rights in the Americas 2006 analytical report ELECTIONS, DEMOCRACY, AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE AMERICAS 2006 ANALYTICAL REPORT SERIE CUADERNOS DE CAPEL ELECTIONS, DEMOCRACY, AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE AMERICAS 2006 ANALYTICAL REPORT IIHR - CAPEL Inter-American Institute of Human Rights Center for Electoral Promotion and Assistance 2007 First Edition © IIHR - CAPEL, Costa Rica, 2007 The ideas expressed by the authors in CUADERNOS DE CAPEL, not necessarily correspond to the ones by IIHR / CAPEL 364.67 I59a Instituto Interamericano de Derechos Humanos. Elections, democracy and human rights in the Americas 2006: analytical report / Instituto Interamericano de Derechos Humanos. -- San José, C.R. : Corte IDH, 2007. 64 p. ; 13 x 21 cm. -- (Cuadernos de CAPEL ; no. 51) ISBN: 978-9968-917-66-7 1. Derecho electoral 2. Democracia 3. Elecciones 4. Derechos humanos I. Título. All or part of this publication may be reproduced, subject to the condition that is not been altered, credits are entirely considered, and a copy of the publication or reproduction is sent to the editor. Publishing Team Roberto Cuéllar M., IIHR Executive Director José Thompson, Director, Center for Electoral Promotion and Assistance Academic Coordination Óscar Álvarez Araya Consultant Marisol Molestina Coordinator Information and Editorial Service Unit Information and Editorial Service Unit Prepress Masterlitho S.A. Printer Inter-American Institute for Human Rights P.O. Box 10.081-1000 San José, Costa Rica Phone: (506) 234-0404 Fax: (506) 234-0955 e-mail: [email protected] www.iidh.ed.cr Content Introduction . .9 Brief analysis of presidential elections in each country . .14 An unprecedented and marathon-like electoral agenda . .27 Perception of democracy and political parties in 2006 . .31 Towards the end of the presidential system? Challenges, risks and dangers of the presidential role . .32 Elections and electoral institutionality . .42 As a conclusion . .60 Bibliography and information sources . .62 7 Introduction 1. Many events have been taking place at a fast pace in Latin America and the Caribbean during the first quarter of the year 2007. However, due to such facts and the haste of the events, we cannot omit the 40 elections – 12 presidential, 4 runoffs, 14 parliamentary, 6 of municipal government, 2 referendums, and 2 special ones. In an organized manner and within a busy political agenda, these elections were carried between November 27, 2005, starting with the Republic of Honduras, and December 3, 2006, finishing with the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. To this long list, three elections in the American Caribbean (Surinam –May 2005–, Jamaica April 2005–, and Santa Lucia –December 2006– since Haiti is considered part of Latin America in this Report) and two in North America (Canada and the U.S) have to be added. The Inter-American Institute of Human Rights (IIHR) monitored these elections through its Center for Electoral Promotion and Assistance (CAPEL), which is the Technical Department of the Inter-American Union of Electoral Bodies (UNIORE) and of the two regional protocols (Association of Electoral Bodies of Central America and the Caribbean, Tikal Protocol, and the Association of Electoral Bodies of South America, Quito Protocol) that gather more than 25 entities and electoral agencies worldwide. As a result of the analysis, the elections were participative at first sight, without surpassing the voting rates and numbers of the 1992- 1996 period this document refers to, except in some countries. The general level of participation was of 50% and 40% of abstention. Data indicate and also warn about the fact that young voters (from 18 to 25 years old) took little part in the elections, compared to the period mentioned before. This electoral cycle, which we call 9 Elections, democracy, and human rights in the Americas unprecedented “marathon”, has modified the political situation in America. This is reflected in the change of the traditional govern- mental tendencies of the last decades of the XX century. In general terms, these election processes with several votes also showed that political parties believe that elections are worth the effort and that they can ascend to the electoral stage (or platform) in spite of the fact that, in some places, uncertainty kept citizens in suspense because of the similar results and apparent ties, such as in the elections of Honduras, Costa Rica, Peru, and especially in Mexico. 2. Those 40 elections have shown that the hemisphere believes in democracy: more than 330 million people have voted in Latin America during those 14 months. Besides being the most evident proof of exercising the right of political participation, it is also the indisputable demonstration that elections are now the “path” towards changes and political transformations. As said before, it is the most evident proof that political parties now know that compet- ing in America's multiparty scenario is worth the effort despite that their credibility has decreased and is being questioned. Likewise, this tendency confirms that the electoral arbiters work well enough. This is not of less importance if it is compared to the democracy of 25 years ago, which had a precarious electoral institutionalism. Throughout this election period, a feeling of expectation and optimism was clearly perceived. In contrast to the first two election movements that had an impact in the democratization of America and started in the Republic of Argentina (1983), the elections reflected more diverse opinions and, in very few cases, polariza- tions in the calendar that finished on last December 3. 3. This unknown series of elections showed that there has been progress in the electoral institutionalism. This is not a vain effort for short-term democracies in countries dominated by dictatorships that have gained the power through aggressive coups d' état and those overwhelmed due to insurgent wars. Such phenomena had serious consequences for human rights. Nowadays, however, Latin America is the area of the American hemisphere with greater citi- zen insecurity; the latter is responsible for the considerable amount 10 2006 analytical report of murders and kidnappings in several countries. Criminal violence has exceeded the limits of police authority. As usual, Latin America is an area where governments suffer from high levels of corruption; poverty is only surpassed by the one in sub-Saharan Africa, and one with unmanageable misery rates in at least ten countries of this area. Accordingly, the image now offered by American democratization is still far from being stable and coherent with the main pillars of the Rule of Law. Some analysts argue that Latin American democracy is characterized by an appropriate sum total of votes; fewer consider that it is a sustainable political success. Thus, the view we have about regional governments upon the new political configuration is actually different from the one of the past. There are now countries opposing each other in conflicting and contradictory speeches which make foreign affairs tense due to the conception held about democracy, development, and the exer- cise of power. In some countries, there is an emphasis in the fact that democracy is the mass government; therefore, social democracy of law should be highlighted. Others prioritize the principles of the Rule of Law as pillars of any political system and as protection of the fundamental rights of any citizenship without any discrimi- nation. 4. Because of the election results, integration processes have also been renewed. They are now scenarios for agreements and compromises between countries that clearly aim at taking control of these regional initiatives to take a stance, which are more evident and significant in South America. The conditions currently regulat- ing the multilateral dialogue have been represented in the predomi- nance of the interconnection and energy exchange together with the commotion caused by the high prices of raw materials, especially petroleum, gas market and other hydrocarbons, and to a lesser degree, of copper. Nationalizing natural resources, new Bolivarian alliances, and alternative regional mechanisms now modify the hemispherical relations between south, central, and Caribbean regions as well as the agenda with the United States, the most important business partner of the region. 11 Elections, democracy, and human rights in the Americas In the past, there were political differences. Nevertheless, clear discrepancies between several countries and patterns of different groups about a development model as well as about the type of international insertion that is more beneficial for their societies are now evident. At the end of this vast election period, in Latin America, there are different opinions and expectations, tendencies full of electoral energy therein referendums are emphasized; these reflect an improvement, at least, compared to the disappointing years of political frustrations and democratic deterioration since the fall of communism (1990). Nowadays, in this new century aggra- vated by the 9/11 (2001), American countries tend towards elections as an essential way to participate in political decisions and changes precisely the same day therein the 34 States part of the system of the Organization of American States (OAS) signed the Inter-American Democratic Charter in Lima, which established specific institutions for the collective protection of the hemispherical

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