ELECTION MONITORS AND OBSERVERS DEPLOY AHEAD OF 20TH SEPTEMBER POLLS

The Southern African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes –SACCORD- says it has deployed almost
2,000 election observers and monitors.

SACCORD Executive Director, Lee Habasonda has told ZANIS that the election observers are under the Civil Society Electoral Coalition.

And Mr Habasonda has urged political players to be tolerant as they wind up their campaigns before the general elections on 20^th September.

He has further urged voters to reject violence as they cast their ballots next week.

Meanwhile, the SADC election observer mission says its presence in the country is to monitor the electoral process and not the results.

The delegation leader, Fako Likoti says its major role is to see how the process is handled ahead of next week’s general elections.

Dr Likoti has explained that the delegation will only deploy its representation in select polling stations in the country.

And the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) today deployed another 56 of its observers into all corners of Zambia in preparation for the 20 September 2011 general elections. In total the mission will deploy 120 observers across the country to observe the final preparations for the polling.

The EU EOM had deployed 24 long-term observers in all nine provinces at the end of August and the 56 short-term observers have joined their colleagues in the field, and will arrive at their destinations in the next couple of days.

The observers who have just arrived and the mission’s other observers will assess the voting day, compilation of results and post-election activities, including complaints and appeals procedures.

Chief Observer of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Zambia 2011, Ms Maria Muñiz De Urquiza, and Member of the European Parliament (Spain) told the watchdog that she is also having a series of discussions with stakeholders in the run up to the forthcoming presidential and National Assembly elections.

The EU EOM operates in accordance with the “Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation” adopted by a number of international bodies involved in election observation in 2005 at the United Nations in New York.

Shortly after Election Day, the mission will issue a preliminary statement of its initial findings and conclusions at a press conference in Lusaka. A more comprehensive final report, including recommendations for future elections, will be published within three months of Election Day