edit in Dawn, July 14th, 2018
ISLAMABAD: The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Pakistan on Friday said it would not be able to thoroughly assess some key aspects of the electoral processes owing to delayed issuance of accreditations to them.In a statement issued on Friday, it said the mission had been operational in Islamabad since June 24. It was deployed after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) welcomed the presence of an observation mission for the general elections.
It said the mission received accreditation for its long-term observers (LTOs) on Friday allowing for their deployment in the coming days. EU observation methodology focuses on comprehensive long-term observation, meaning LTOs are usually deployed 4-5 weeks before the elections day to cover all stages of an election process.In line with EU EOM methodology, the mission was ready to deploy in early June. However, due to a series of bureaucratic delays, the core team arrived only on June 24 and the mission’s 60 long-term observers in early July.
“The short period of time between now and election day has implications on the EU EOM’s ability to thoroughly assess some key aspects of the process, including the campaign environment in different parts of the country, as well as the work of the election administration at local level.” The statement, however, said the EU EOM would continue to observe the electoral process in an independent and impartial manner. It will issue its preliminary statement on the electoral process on July 27. https://www.dawn.com/news/1419994/eu-mission-airs-inability-to-assess-key-election-aspects
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