Ambassador Albert R. Ramdin, Assistant Secretary General of the Organization of American States paid an official visit to Guyana, February 13-14, 2006. The visit revolved around four central issues – OAS-Guyana cooperation, the country’s upcoming elections, the requested election observation role for the OAS, and OAS-Caricom cooperation.

Consequently, the two-day visit included meetings with a broad range of stakeholders from government, civil society, media and main political parties. Meetings were organized or facilitated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Guyana with input and support from the Office of the General Secretariat.

Meetings were held with His Excellency President Bharrat Jagdeo, The Hon. Rudy Insanally, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Mr. Ralph Ramkarran, Speaker of the National Assembly; and other government officials.

The delegation met also with the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and leaders and senior representatives of four main political parties – the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), the main parliamentary opposition party the People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R), Alliance for Change and The Third Force.

The opportunity was also used to directly engage members of the international community including Caricom, the Commonwealth Secretariat, resident diplomats and representatives of multilateral organizations.

On Monday, February 13, I joined Sir Paul Reeves, the Commonwealth Secretariat’s Special Envoy to Guyana, as featured speakers at a public forum on “The Importance of Free and Fair Elections in a Democratic State.” Over 150 individuals including politicians, electoral officials, civil society and the media attended the forum which was organized by the Private Sector Commission of Guyana.

Discussions over the course of two days covered a range of topics including economic challenges being confronted by Guyana’s rice and sugar industries, the impact of natural disasters particularly floods on economic and civic life in Guyana as well as support received from the OAS in this area and initiatives underway that address risk reduction, preparedness and disaster management. There was widespread recognition of the role that the OAS plays in terms of technical cooperation in a number of policy areas as well as with training, scholarships, and election observation.

Given that elections are imminent, this issue rose to the surface as being of primary interest for all sectors. Central themes that emerged in almost all discussions with respect to the elections included the need for technical assistance, international electoral observation, access and opportunity, technical preparedness, security, and improved communication and transparency with respect to pre-electoral procedures.

Elections are constitutionally due by August 4, 2006. Although a date certain has not yet been announced for the holding of elections, the Government of Guyana began reaching out to international organizations, including the OAS, several months ago inviting their participation as election observers.

Several key stakeholders speculated that elections will probably take place in July 2006. Time pressure is therefore mounting for implementation of the electoral calendar as well as the need for increased dialogue and negotiation to create a conducive electoral environment.

The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) is the permanent body that sets policy for voter registration, maintenance of the voters' list and the administration of all national, regional and local government elections.

GECOM has been the recipient of funding support from the international donor community in previous elections. In support of the 2006 elections, the Government of Guyana and GECOM signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and European Union on July 20, 2005. This MOU provides for assistance to the Government of Guyana to ensure free and fair elections.

In the run-up to elections and as part of the preparatory process, two Joint International Technical Assessors (JITAs) are currently providing technical assistance and independent oversight of the Elections Commission pre-election activities. JITAs monitor all the technical aspects of election preparations and provide independent assessments to the Elections Commission, the government of Guyana and the donor community.(1) The JITA’s operate out of offices adjoining those of the Commission. This proximity facilitates access to the work of the Commission.

Of concern is a general perception that information is not forthcoming from the Elections Commission and that there is a lack of coherence and unity among the Commission members. There appears to be a growing consensus that there should be greater transparency with regards to the activities of the Elections Commission, communication channels should be open, a clear dialogue mechanism should be established and the rules governing the composition of the Commission should be reviewed post-election to be more responsive to current political realities.

In anticipation of the upcoming elections, political parties are in the process of staking out positions and creating political platforms. Meetings with four political parties revealed a significant level of suspicion and mistrust. This mistrust hinders communication and partnership building, and contributes to the tendency toward practicing the politics of power viewed through the prism of ethnicity rather than politics of development and persuasion.

Opposition parties registered their concerns with respect to the verification and validity of the Official List of Electors (OLE). The People’s National Congress/Reform has been most vocal in its criticisms of the Provisional Electoral List and what it considers to be ineffective attempts at cleaning up the list. Whereas, the PNC/R has asked for house to house verification as the most effective method for verifying the 2001 list, GECOM has suggested the possibility of sampling. Sampling is not acceptable to the PNC/R. Further, the Elections Commission has indicated that it has instituted a voter ID card with seven different parameters and is working with the Jamaican electoral authorities to install software that will allow fingerprint comparisons. These technical advances are designed to isolate multiple registrations and reduce/eliminate voter fraud.

The Opposition has further noted that the 23 registration centers that have been opened to facilitate continuous registration are inadequate and limit access and opportunity for individuals who may have to travel large distances. The Elections Commission has recently added new permanent registration centers and mobile registration units to help address this issue.

Based on their concerns, the main opposition has declared that it is “not prepared to accept shortcuts” and has not ruled out the possibility of boycotting the elections or launching a court challenge to the registration process. In a speech to the nation on February 14, 2006, Mr. Corbin reiterated that there are "unresolved matters that could jeopardize the holding of elections."(2)

The opposition parties also alluded to the outstanding matters in terms of implementation in the Herdmanston Accord, the St. Lucia Agreement and other subsequent agreements between the People’s Progressive Party/Civic and the People’s National Congress/Reform. The Government indicated in this regard that substantive progress has been made and that mechanisms have been put in place to continue further implementation.

The quantity and range of issues of substantive disagreement and
misunderstanding underscore the need for a clear communication strategy for consistent engagement between the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), political parties and the electorate, at large. Clear, consistent communication is urgently needed in order to inform, educate and build public trust and confidence in the process.

Dialogue between political parties appears to be restricted to activities surrounding parliamentary committees. Beyond the Parliament, a mechanism for communication between political parties -- especially the ruling party (PPP/Civic) and the main opposition party (PNC/Reform) – could be instrumental in reducing political tensions and ethnic rivalries, and in advancing national dialogue.

All parties have developed mechanisms for communicating directly with
their constituents and the nation through print and electronic media. However, opposition parties have raised concerns about limited access to state media.

Security concerns were expressed by several individuals during private meetings. The issue was also mentioned repeatedly by audience members at the public forum. Increasing violence is often associated with the growth in the number of gangs and transnational criminal activities including illegal arms and drug trafficking.

Two “execution style slayings” in recent weeks by groups of gunmen have bred fear of an escalation of violence and have the potential to aggravate tensions in a charged pre-electoral political environment.

Law enforcement agencies are facing increased pressure to address the crime problem seriously and to solve crimes in a timely manner. The government of Guyana has indicated its commitment to lending the necessary support to law enforcement in maintaining public order and safeguarding citizen security.

On January 7, 2006, the main local media organizations signed a voluntary code of conduct pledging to engage in responsible journalism in the context of the upcoming elections.

In remarks at a public forum, I used the opportunity to emphasize that “all members of civil society including individual citizens, religious organizations, media, academia, the business community, trade unions and political leaders have the responsibility and obligation to contribute to democracy, development, security and peace.”

There remains room for improvement in civil society participation. The general perception is that many civil society organizations lean toward partisan, party-oriented approaches or are reluctant to engage actively in constructive and inclusive dialogue. The organization of the well-attended public forum on February 13, 2006, by the Private Sector Commission demonstrated the recognition by civil society that it can play an important role in elevating public discourse. The meeting culminated with calls for similar non-partisan forums in different regions to discuss relevant issues.

OAS: Future Role

On September 15, 2005, the government of Guyana sent a letter to OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza inviting the OAS to field an electoral observer team for the elections which are constitutionally due by August 4, 2006. The OAS responded positively to similar requests for elections observation in 1997 and 2001. Secretary General Insulza responded on December 2, 2005, indicating the intention to respond affirmatively to this request pending announcement of the election date and the availability of funds to support such a mission.

Technical assistance is already being provided to the Electoral Commission by the JITA’s. The international donor community has been helpful in providing funding to assist with elections and in acting as neutral arbiters to encourage and facilitate dialogue. The Commonwealth Secretariat’s Special Envoy to Guyana, Sir Paul Reeves, is frequently on site in Guyana working directly with political parties.

Government officials, party leaders, election officials and international community representatives indicated that there is significant interest from all stakeholders in having a “long-term” election observer mission from the OAS. A similar request has also been submitted to the Commonwealth Secretariat and Caricom.

However, the mandate of the long term mission appeared unclear with different actors visualizing different roles for such a mission. I indicated that this suggestion would be further discussed at the OAS and recommended that more specific information be developed on the mission objectives, length of engagement, anticipated composition of the management and clearly defined terms of reference. On February 14, 2006, the OAS received a formal request for the long term observer mission along with the terms of reference.

My response to the role of the OAS in support of the process was as follows:

o The OAS, as in many other countries, is committed to working with the government and people of Guyana on issues of strengthening democracy, development, security and governability – and will be responsive to election priority concerns in 2006.

o The OAS would welcome the possibility of working in partnership with Caricom and the Commonwealth Secretariat in support of activities in Guyana.

o The OAS is prepared to consider hosting a Long Term Electoral Mission pending:

i. analysis of the objectives and likely impact of such a mission by experts from the Department of Politics and Democracy;
ii. identification and availability of long-term technical observation capacity; and
iii. the ability of the OAS to mobilize the necessary financial resources.


I thank you.
___________________________________________________________

(1) GECOM Press release, “New JITA Joins GECOM,” October 28, 2005.

(2) See Attachment IV for Text of Address to the Nation on February 14, 2006 by Robert Corbin, Leader of the People’s National Congress/Reform.