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Press Release

OAS Highlights Citizen Participation in Colombian Local Elections

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, today congratulated the Columbian government and people “on having celebrated a new electoral day with an exemplary civic spirit and in a peaceful and totally democratic way.”

The head of the OAS praised the “maturity and experience of the Colombian people, who once more fully exercised their rights, despite the violence that some groups have sought to impose.” Secretary General Insulza also thanked the work of the Electoral Oversight Mission of the OAS (EOM/OAS) that was present during the voting, with Beatriz Paredes of Mexico as its Chief of Mission.

Similarly, the Electoral Oversight Mission of the Organization of American States congratulates the people of Colombia on their participation in local elections, which instituted new authorities in 32 departments and 1102 Mayoralties. Elections on Sunday for governors, mayors, Congress representatives and council persons took place in the greatest part of the national territory in an environment of peace, thanks to the civic responsibility of most Colombians and the positive work of security institutions who worked closely with electoral authorities in overseeing the process.

During the casting of the ballots, the 60 OAS overseers were deployed in 307 voting sites in 23 departments, plus the Capital District. The EOM/OAS wishes to highlight that the tables observed were set up early and with all the necessary materials, with few exceptions due to cold weather.

Regarding the administration of the electoral process, progress has been noted thanks to political reforms, especially regarding the simplification of the ballot design and gender-related reforms. Furthermore, we underline the efficiency in the vote counting, which allowed citizens to receive timely results of the elections, contributing confidence and certainty to the process.

The OAS Mission observed that the process of transmitting preliminary information was conducted efficiently, even when, as the OAS has noted on other occasions, telephone transmission of data does not generate the necessary securities for an effective system of authentication, verification and audit.

The Mission also highlights the application of the gender quota that was instrumental in increasing participation of women candidates. The number of women candidates increased from 19.64 percent in 2007 to 35.21 percent on this occasion, which represents a significant step forward in the strengthening of representative democracy. In this sense, we urge the Colombian State to continue to promote the political participation of women so it may continue to rise in future elections. It is indispensable to increase efforts to train women at different levels so their full participation in political processes may be guaranteed.

We also note the efforts by civil society organizations to observe the elections. The mission believes this participation by citizens contributes to transparency and favors the development of democracy.

Nevertheless, we are concerned by the low presence of witnesses from political parties and movements during the elections, though these initially low percentages increased during the voting. We note the importance of these stakeholders to the electoral process as guarantors of transparency and confidence in the system, as well as the need to strengthen their work of supervision and vigilance.

The Mission believes that with the elimination of the voter’s signature and fingerprint in the E-11 voter’s registration form at the voting table, the number of mechanisms for preventing voter fraud was reduced. We believe appropriate the pilot program for the use of the biometric fingerprint which could mitigate these electoral crimes in future elections, as long as their application has enough technology and reach to guarantee its effectiveness.

We also note that some problems were observed in these elections with the new technology’s pilot, for example, a delay at the time of identification. This was the result of such factors as the slow reading of nearly 10 percent of entities, the lack of machines, and the confusion over the steps to follow in order to identify oneself before voting, and the congestion in the voting lines. Nevertheless, any method that protects against voter fraud is welcome by the OAS.

The EOM/OAS highlights the need to implement the disposition contemplated in the electoral law with respect to the delivery of a copy of the tally E-14 to the witnesses from political parties and movements to add elements of certainty to the process. The absence of this copy reduces the possibility that political actors have enough guarantees to follow-through on their complaints.

The Mission received 17 claims that have been channeled to the corresponding authorities. For their part, the institutions in charge of security during the electoral process reported five situations on the day of the voting in the municipalities of Leiva (Nariño), Tame (Arauca), La Hormiga (Putumayo), Buenaventura and Florida (Valle). Furthermore, OAS Mission overseers on Sunday witnessed situations of disorderly conduct in Hato Nuevo (La Guajira), Pereira (Risaralda), y Montería (Córdoba). This in addition to instances during the pre-electoral period.

Recommendations:

1. Strengthening the legal framework. As part of the exercise in reforming the electoral code, the Mission highlights the importance of conducting a full review of the structure of electoral institutions and the agencies responsible for the implementation and vigilance of the electoral process. Also, it is necessary to have a unique legal framework to regulate the organization, development and surveillance of the functions attributed to every agency involved in the elections. As well as the need to create clear mechanisms in the parties, political movements and civil society to guarantee their participation and the transparency of the process. It is furthermore indispensable that legislation specify definitive terms for the electoral process, regarding dates and limits for interjecting resources, processing results, and all else that guarantees certainty for participants in the process.

2. Capacity building and delimitation of institutional responsibilities. The Mission observed that numerous diverse groups of institutional agents participated in the organization of the electoral process. This results in expanded control and the need to avoid duplication of tasks. It is advisable to review the process in its entirety and seek to simplify it, as well as to favor improved coordination among participants.

3. Improving the campaign finance system. We suggest strengthening the institutional capacity that allows responsible parties overseeing campaign financing to conduct their work based on adequate instruments.

4. Coherence among the responsibilities of public and private stakeholders in the organization of the electoral processes. We recommend that a diagnosis be conducted of the outsourcing of various phases of the process of electoral organization to analyze its pertinence and transparency. Full certainty is required in the definition and assignment of responsibilities between the public authority and participating contractors, protecting compliance of the corresponding norms. In this sense, the Mission recommends a review of the proliferation of contracting so as to optimize control over the electoral process on behalf of the responsible party.

5. Establishment of a set of norms on electoral polls. Regarding electoral polls, we suggest an evaluation of the appropriateness of determining deadlines for their publication, and of requesting a disclosure of its methodological framework.

A report by the Mission of Electoral Oversight to be presented before the OAS Permanent Council and delivered to Colombian authorities will expand upon these preliminary considerations and other aspects of the elections. Nevertheless, what is of utmost importance for Colombian society regarding the elections of October 30 is that despite current problems and in an environment of plurality, the country has made progress towards a process of democratization that will be consolidated, and for which it is necessary to generate electoral legislation that supports its democratic achievements.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-930/11