364 foreign poll observers accredited

MANILA, Philippines – A total of 364 foreign observers and 159 foreign journalists have registered with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to monitor the country’s first automated polls on Monday.

The Comelec’s Education and Information Division (EID) said the number of foreign observers watching this Monday’s elections was bigger than the 320 who witnessed the 2007 mid-term polls. The number of foreign media then was not available.

Comelec spokesman and EID director James Jimenez said the poll body expected the increased international community interest in the 2010 elections because the Philippines is adopting an automated election system for the first time.

“Whatever happens, they will learn from us so we are really expecting the 2010 election to be the country’s most watched electoral process,” Jimenez said.

The foreign observers were sent by almost all of the countries that have diplomatic ties with the Philippines.

Among the international organizations that dispatched observers are the Carter Center, International Foundation for Electoral System, Asian Network for Free Elections (Anfrel), and Compact for Peaceful Election.

Some of the foreign observers would be focusing on President Arroyo who is seeking a seat to represent the second congressional district of Pampanga.

Mrs. Arroyo made history as the first president who sought a lower elective position.

Twenty-four foreign observers from 10 different countries belonging to the International Observers Mission will troop to Pampanga and observe the conduct of the local elections in the province.

Other observers from the group Compact for Peaceful and Democratic Elections said they would observe the conduct of elections in Pasig City, Negros Occidental and Maguindanao, the scene of last year’s massacre of 57 people.

The foreign observers are mostly peace advocates, parliamentarians and journalists from the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden, Germany, Burma, Timor Lest, Malaysia, South Korea, Indonesia and the US.

According to Faye Laquio, overall coordinator of Compact’s 2010 International Observation Mission, they have chosen the areas of Pampanga, Pasig, Negros Occidental and Maguindanao because these have records of political violence, entrenched political families, and poll anomalies.

“We take special notice of Pampanga and Pasig because of the interesting electoral races in those areas,” Laquio said.

She referred to the gubernatorial race between Gov. Eduardo “Among Ed” Panlilio and former provincial board member Lilia Pineda and the congressional race between President Arroyo and Adonis Simpao in the second district of the province.

Also notable, Laquio said, is the mayoralty race between incumbent Pasig Mayor Vicente Eusebio and social movement leader Ricardo Reyes.

On Wednesday, the Comelec ruled to uphold its decision unseating Panlilio in favor of Pineda, further triggering political polarization in the province.

Simpao claimed he had been receiving death threats since the local campaign began.

Negros Occidental and Maguindanao were also chosen since the provinces are traditionally seen as hotbeds of election-related violence.

The group said such incidents are precisely issues that international observers would like to monitor in their eight-day mission.

Compact said the delegates would like to “observe and document voter freedom and the behavior pattern of different politicians and political parties.”

“Beyond the violence and the numerous cases of fraud, the foreign observers want to make an appraisal of how we conduct our election and how it helps in deepening our democracy and in providing people with genuine spaces and venues for genuine political expression,” Laquio said.

Anfrel, for its part, called on the Philippine government to ensure the conduct of clean and peaceful elections on Monday.

The Bangkok-based organization issued a statement calling on the Philippine government “to leave no stone unturned to create a conductive atmosphere for free, fair and peaceful elections.”

The group also urged political parties and candidates to “redouble their efforts to fully respect the relevant election laws, regulations and code of conduct during the campaign and beyond.”

Anfrel has sent 41 international observers from 14 countries to observe the polls.

The group said this Monday’s election “could be a new chapter of clean and credible elections for the country and an admirable initiative for the Asian people towards ensuring freedom of elections in the region.”

“Even though the Philippines is the first country in Southeast Asia to attempt a synchronized nationwide election using an automated machine, Anfrel believes that the testing and performance of the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines should be more transparent to ensure public confidence of the machines,” the group said.

Anfrel also encouraged all registered voters to come out to “be acquainted with the new automated election system and duly exercise their franchise in the upcoming elections.” –Sheila Crisostomo and Michael Punongbayan (The Philippine Star)