Maldives News | Dhivehi Observer | South Asia | Statement of Concern on Pakistan’s 18 February 2008 Elections

Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative

Statement of Concern on Pakistan's 18 February 2008 Elections

Media Release from Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (Saturday, 16 February 2008)

As election-day dawns, severe doubts cloud the electoral processes in Pakistan. There are indeed several structural problems in the functioning of the Election Commission of Pakistan. Several of the caretaker government's pre-poll activities have the strong possibility of compromising the elections. Illustratively, a large number of the complaints made to the Election Commission remain unaddressed. In the absence of an independent judiciary there are no democratic means to scrutinise and challenge potential deficiencies in the Election Commission of Pakistan, and its electoral preparations.

In this context, the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) expresses its grave concern over the ability of the caretaker government to conduct free and fair elections.

The breakdown of Pakistan's Constitutional framework is deeply regrettable. Extensive executive interference and the repeated subordination of the Constitution to Presidential Orders have reduced Constitutional guarantees of democratic freedoms to mere text. The repression and distortion of judicial independence in Pakistan has allowed the executive full reign, with no compulsion of accountability. Pakistan's refusal to allow Commonwealth election observers is of further disappointment.

It is, therefore, against the background of the Harare Declaration; acknowledging that the Commonwealth and its countries have pledged to work with renewed vigour, concentrating especially on the protection and promotion of the fundamental political values of the Commonwealth, including: democracy, democratic processes and institutions which reflect national circumstances, the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary, just and honest government; and, in recalling Pakistan's commitments to human rights as a member of the UN Human Rights Council; that CHRI calls upon the electoral institutions of Pakistan and the caretaker government to conduct the elections in Pakistan on 18 February 2008 with utmost care for transparency and discernable impartiality.

CHRI also calls upon all election observers, particularly international observers, to scrutinise the election process in Pakistan on the basis of accepted international standards. Election observations must take account of the legal and political environment and the restraints, created by these, prior to elections. They must be concerned with the possibility of future challenges to the election process being devalued by the current status of the election commission and the judiciary, along with its ability to impartially adjudicate challenges in the future. Election observations that restrict themselves to legitimising elections on the basis of observing only the formal process of balloting, will only serve to embed undemocratic and unsustainable governance structures, strongly increasing the possibility of social conflict. This will only lead to an increase in the spread of discontent, extremism and devalue the rule of law, which will inevitably impact negatively on fragile regional security.

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The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) is an independent, non-partisan, international NGO working for the practical realisation of human rights in the countries of the Commonwealth.

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