Election monitoring is thought to be an essential part of the upcoming elections, one that civil society groups and political parties have been especially adament about. The Independent Election Commission (IEC) on Friday asked all Afghan and foreign groups wishing to observe the voting process to register as soon as possible.
After the 2009 elections saw rampant fraud and diminished credibility, many are anxious about April's vote and whether or not it will be afflicted by similar issues. Ensuring there are neutral observers to document and discourage electoral improprieties is thus one of the top priorities for election officials.
"We ask that all national and international institutions inform the IEC if they want to observe or cover the election process so we can make the necessary arrangements," IEC Spokesman Noor Mohammad Noor said. "The IEC is eager to see maximum involvement of observers in the upcoming elections."
So far six international organizations, 63 national groups, 61 local media, 31 international media and 26 political parties have received credential letters certifying them to monitor the elections.
The election monitoring is just one of the many tasks the IEC has ahead of it in the last few weeks before the April vote. The distribution of election materials to polling centers is another effort underway.
"We are planning to start our second phase during which materials will be moved from our provincial offices to district offices in villages," Noor said.
Source/Fuente: http://www.tolonews.com/elections2014/groups-register-election-monitoring
