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Commonwealth Secretariat press release

Commonwealth releases Expert Team report on Lesotho’s local government elections

10 June 2005

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon today welcomed the report of the independent Commonwealth Expert Team which was present for the Local Government Elections in Lesotho, held on 30 April 2005.  The Team was jointly organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum.

Mr McKinnon said: "This is a comprehensive and constructive report. I hope its recommendations will be of assistance.

"I wish Lesotho's new local democracy structures well and congratulate the people of Lesotho on their first local government elections since independence. 

"The people of Lesotho have the continuing support of both the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum in the efforts to strengthen the country's democracy".

The report commends the conduct of the poll in a peaceful atmosphere, but also notes problems of communication among the main participants in the process.

The Expert Team highlights a number of areas in which it believes improvements can be made for the future.  It specifically refers to the delimitation of constituencies, the voter registration process, voter education, and the need for wider consultation prior to the elections. 

The report also sets out proposals to enhance the efficiency of the polling arrangements on Election Day, and suggests a number of areas in which technical assistance may be needed.

Note to Editors:

The Team was asked by the Commonwealth Secretary-General to observe preparations for the elections, the polling, counting and results process and the overall electoral environment. The decision to send the Commonwealth Expert Team followed an invitation from the Independent Electoral Commission. The members of the Expert Team were: 

Councillor John E Otekat
Chairperson of the Commonwealth Local Government Forum,
President of the Uganda Local Government Association and Chairperson of Soroti District
Uganda 

Councillor Leslie Lynch
Councillor on San Fernando City Council, and Member of the Local Government Association
Trinidad and Tobago 

Ms Angela Odah
National Co-ordinator,
Transition Monitoring Group (NGO Coalition)
Nigeria 

The members of the Expert Team began work on 25 April 2005 and remained in Lesotho until 5 May. The Secretary-General has sent their report to the Prime Minister of Lesotho, the Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission, the main political parties and Commonwealth Governments. The full text of the Report of the Expert Team is available on the Commonwealth Secretariat website, www.thecommonwealth.org, by following the Democracy link under the 'What We Do' section. The Commonwealth Secretary-General had sent Commonwealth Observer Groups for the 1998 and 2002 General Elections in Lesotho.

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