CPA observers to review previous reports
(CNS): The independent team of international experts who are scheduled to conduct a virtual expert mission for 14 April General Election will also be reviewing how Cayman has implemented the recommendations previous teams made after the missions in 2013 and 2017. However, it is unlikely to take them very long to find out that almost none of the significant past advice in their reports has been implemented.
The team was invited by Governor Martyn Roper and they will be conducting digital meetings and interviews with a wide range of stakeholders between 6 and 20 April. CNS is awaiting confirmation on plans to also engage the local press.
The team of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association British Islands and Mediterranean Region (CPA BIMR) experts are unable to attend in person this time because of the COVID-19 pandemic and isolation protocols. But they have already conducted at least three successful technology-based observations over the last year.
What was described as an adaptation of the election observation methodology in these unprecedented circumstances has already been applied successfully by CPA BIMR for general elections in Anguilla and Guernsey in 2020 and TCI earlier this year.
The Mission will assess Cayman Islands’ General Election against international standards, commitments and obligations as well as domestic laws. The team will look at whether or not their previous recommendations were adopted when they produce what will be the third report on elections in the Cayman Islands.
During the last mission the observers had given the vote itself a clean bill of health but they raised a number of concerns about the Elections Law, not least the requirement for voters to be resident for at least two of the four years immediately preceding registration, describing it as “excessive”. This issue has still not been addressed.
They also raised concerns about campaign finance and the retrospective way complaints are addressed, among many other issues. Altogether, the 2013 report had 14 recommendations and the 2017 report had 21 recommendations.
Although they cannot be here in person, the team plans to meet with election officials, candidates, voters and civil society groups to gain a better understanding of the electoral process and political context of the election. Their report, including recommendations, will be published within two months of the election.
“We are delighted that the Cayman Islands has invited our team of international experts to assess its election for a third time,” said CPA BIMR Regional Secretary Jon Davies.
“Having successfully delivered multiple election Expert Missions virtually over the past year, the team is looking forward to engaging remotely with stakeholders in the Cayman Islands. CPA BIMR is honoured to assist Cayman Islands in support of transparent and open democracy.”
Election Observation Missions CPA UK acts as the secretariat to CPA British Islands and Mediterranean Region (BIMR), one of the nine regions of the CPA network, and is committed to strengthening democracy and good governance.
See the two previous reports in the CNS Library.
Category: Election News
