Owen Arthur to lead Commonwealth team to observe Maldives presidential election

This was announced by Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma. The Observers will be supported by a staff team from the Commonwealth Secretariat.

The Commonwealth was invited by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Maldives to observe the election.

“This election is the first to be conducted under the new Constitution, which was ratified in August 2008, and the first election under the new multiparty system,” said the Secretary-General.

He added that the mandate of the Observer Group is to consider the various factors impinging on the credibility of the electoral process as a whole. The Group will determine in its own judgement whether the election has been conducted according to the standards for democratic elections to which the country has committed itself, in adhering to national election-related legislation and relevant regional, Commonwealth and other international commitments.

The team will be in Maldives from 1 October.

The Commonwealth Observer Group comprises:

Mark Stevens, Head of Democracy Section in the Secretariat’s Political Affairs Division, will lead the staff team.

Note to Editors

The Commonwealth conducted an assessment of the 2007 referendum in Maldives, and deployed an Expert Team to observe the country's 2005 parliamentary elections.

The Observer Group will submit a report to the Commonwealth Secretary-General, who will in turn send it to the Government of Maldives, the Electoral Commission, candidates and political parties, and other Commonwealth governments. It will thereafter be posted on the Secretariat's website.

The Observer Group will act impartially and independently and shall conduct itself according to the standards expressed in the International Declaration of Principles for Election Observation, to which the Commonwealth is a signatory.

Key Links:

• Election Observation
• Country Profile: Maldives