BAHRAIN’S main rights watchdog has called for inclusive national consultations to discuss the setting up of a high commission for election affairs.
This was one of the recommendations highlighted in the latest National Institution for Human Rights (NIHR) report on last year’s parliamentary and municipal elections.
The report, released yesterday, included 88 indicators and covered the period before the start of the elections, registering in the electoral lists, receiving applications for nominations, monitoring the electoral process on polling day, observing the final announcement of the winners, and appeals against the results.
NIHR president Ali Al Derazi pointed out that the report’s observations and recommendations seek to ensure the right to candidacy and election, which come as a follow-up of the institution’s recommendations in its previous report of 2018.
The report also highlighted violations and issues and recommended steps to ensure they are rectified ahead of the 2026 polls.
NIHR, and other civil societies, monitored the national polls last November which registered a record-breaking 73 per cent voter turnout during the first round.
This was the highest since the first elections were held in 2002, it was 67pc in 2018.
A total of 344,713 voters were registered to cast their ballots last year to elect 40 members of Parliament and 30 municipal councillors for the four governorates; the Capital Trustees Board is appointed by His Majesty King Hamad.
“The NIHR calls for launching inclusive national consultations aimed at examining the feasibility of establishing a standing high commission for elections affairs that enjoys financial and administrative independence,” said the report.
“It will manage, organise, and monitor the electoral process in co-operation with the judiciary, while benefiting from the relevant international and regional experiences.”
It also called for a new law on organising election campaigning and the use of media outlets by candidates contesting the polls.
This legislation would also deal with issues related to setting a maximum spending limit on campaigns, and deterrent penalties that prevent the violation of its provisions “especially in cases where children are exploited in electoral campaigning in a manner that endangers them”.
While monitoring the 2014 and 2018 polls, the NIHR uncovered several violations including vandalising campaign billboards, making threatening phone calls, sending intimidating text messages and using children to campaign on behalf of candidates outside polling stations.
In its election coverage last year, the GDN also reported on children being used in election campaign, to distribute pamphlets and food items on election day.
“Despite the significant organisational efforts undertaken by the competent authorities, it was noticed that there was strikingly obvious electoral propaganda before and during the start of the ballot process, especially outside the polling centres.
“This was exemplified by posting candidates’ election posters, signboards, and advertisements, or by the presence of individuals, mostly children, wearing items of clothing emblazoned with candidates’ faces and distributing leaflets or water bottles bearing candidates’ photos or other publicity images.
The watchdog added that last-minute attempts by candidates to influence voters using children was against the law.
“The NIHR calls on all contesting candidates to respect the provisions of the law regulating electoral campaigning and to refrain from exploiting children in their election campaign activities in the streets and public roads.
“This practice has negative impacts on children and exposes them to danger in a way that is not suitable for their age group, in the best interests of the child.”
The report also highlighted violations including exploitation of places of worship for indirect electoral campaigning by distributing plastic bottles of water with images of the candidate.
It also documented a criminal investigation that was launched after a son of an election hopeful indicated that a small part of his father’s campaign tent was set on fire by four suspects.
The watchdog has also called for developing a more accurate, rigorous, and seamless unified mechanism to ensure the streamlined entrance of veiled women voters, and to verify their identity while respecting their privacy.
It also suggested that sorting and counting process be undertaken by a team other than the organisers of the polling process, whose work begins by being present at the polling centre at 6pm and continues until the announcement of the results.
“This will positively affect the performance of the team, reduce the errors that may occur during the sorting and counting of ballots, and speed up the announcement of the results,” stated the report.
As for using modern electronic technologies in the sorting and counting process, the Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments Ministry in its response to the NIHR stated that the “matter might be considered”.
Other points raised in the report concerned ballot papers being made available in Braille for the visually impaired.
However, the ministry responded that there are facilities for voters with disabilities who cannot cast their votes, as they can choose their candidate verbally and the chairman of the committee marks the voter’s choice and inserts it in the ballot box in the presence of one of the committee’s members.
As for the recommendation on printing ballot papers in Braille, the ministry stated it believed that it may lead to uncovering the identity of the voter when counting the votes.
Finally, the report called for dedicated spaces in all polling centres for civil societies and human rights defenders to oversee the electoral process and allowing Gulf and Arab non-governmental organisations to monitor the polls as a pilot phase.
sandy@gdnmedia.bh
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