WOMEN’S participation in election monitoring is among a number of issues to be discussed during a three-day workshop and roundtable on democracy, governance and elections which got underway here Monday at the Marriott.It’s a subject that’s especially close to the heart of Ambassador Monorma Soeknandan of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat, under whose auspices, in conjunction with the United Nations (UN), the meeting is being held.
“I am happy to see that, on the eve of International Women’s Day, we are also going to pay attention to gender aspects within the context of Election Observations,” Ambassador Soeknandan said at the event’s opening ceremony, as she urged the room full of mainly male participants to support women in the area of elections observation, as they, too, have an important role to play in that process.
Like Ambassador Soeknandan, UN Resident Coordinator, Khadija Musa also spoke of the need for women to participate in the electoral process.

“I wish to conclude by highlighting the need for supporting women’s political participation particularly; it is very important in ensuring peace and inclusive electoral process in a more stable and democratic society,” Musa said.
She also made the point that the mere idea that the role of women in democracy and elections is on the agenda for the electoral workshop speaks to the important role that women play in society.

VARYING ASPECTS
Among topics to be discussed during the course of the meeting, officially titled Building Resources in Democracy, Governance and Elections (BRIDGE), are the varying aspects of the electoral process, such as electoral systems, observation, frameworks, voting, counting and the tabulation of results
According to Ambassador Soeknandan, election observation is an essential element of CARICOM’s efforts to promote and maintain its democratic values.
“It builds the public’s confidence in the electoral process, and assures them that the process is transparent and that the rights of the participants are protected,” she told the close to 40 workshop participants who are drawn from CARICOM member states, the CARICOM Secretariat and other regional and intergovernmental organisations.
As for the recommendations that stem from electoral observation teams, Ambassador Soeknandan said when implemented, they invariably prove useful to electoral offices in reviewing and updating systems.
She recalled that during the late 1990s and the early 2000s, CARICOM governance support to its Member States was in the form of mediating political conflicts and defusing politically-charged situations before they erupted into violence.
The Region, she said, has since evolved, in that the political processes are a much more peaceful affair. “Notwithstanding, it was recognised that regular monitoring and evaluation of the electoral processes of Member States would increase the public’s confidence, and give legitimacy to the process,” she said.

CARICOM OBSERVER MISSIONS
Giving an insight into CARICOM’s involvement in electoral observer missions, Ambassador Soeknandan said it first started in 2000, and has to date seen the dispatch of more than 25 missions, with many of its members being either Elections Commissioners or Chief Elections Officers.
She was quick to note, however, that though CARICOM Observer Missions have traditionally been small, team members have always been extremely qualified and experienced.
“More importantly,” she said, “team members are familiar with the political scenery of the Caribbean, its traditions, culture, characteristics and are in a better position to monitor and evaluate the process to ensure its conformity to both international and domestic laws.
“They understand how to conduct their business and how to communicate with the society members, because they themselves are an integral part of it.”
One of the main purposes of the workshop, the Surinamese diplomat, whose official designation is CARICOM Deputy Secretary-General, said is to provide an important venue for the exchange of experiences, good practices and lessons learned by representatives of the various CARICOM electoral observer missions.
“Participants will also be in a position to share experiences and good practices on the various aspects of election observation missions with other international organisations such as the African Union, the Organisation of American States, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Organisation for Security Cooperation in Europe, as well as to have exchanges on the promotion of women’s participation in the electoral process,” she stated.

KEY ROLE
Ms Musa, whose role it was to bid the participants welcome, said “Credible, genuine and inclusive elections are necessary to consolidate democracy and promote human rights.”
She then went on to note the key role elections play in bringing about sustainable peace and development in societies.
“It is, of course, the responsibility of sovereign states to ensure periodic and genuine elections that reflect the will of their people,” the UN envoy said, adding:
“However, when requested, the international community and regional organisations should be willing to step in to support nationally-owned and led efforts for peaceful, credible and inclusive elections.”
She noted that the CARICOM Bloc has made “important progress” in conducting periodic and genuine elections in the past, while noting that there are many things that can be learned from the region and from the participants of the workshop.
Musa, who is also the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s Resident Representative here, said over the past 30 years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of countries around the globe that have turned to conducting periodic elections.

ENCOURAGING TREND
This, she said, is an encouraging trend, notwithstanding the fact that the “complexity of the challenges facing elections and election observers has also continued to increase.”
Election observation, she said, “has proved to be of great help to the efforts by Member States to conduct transparent and peaceful elections, particularly through the impacts that such missions can have on public confidence in electoral processes and their results, and also through sound recommendations that can assist national authorities to improve their processes.” The United Nations only deploys election observers if mandated by the United Nations Security Council or the General Assembly.
The aim of the three-day workshop, which ends today, is to address issues of why and how to observe elections, international obligations and the principles for election observation, the impact of observation, the latest trends and challenges in the area of election observation as well as to promote women’s participation through election observation.