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Russia Shrinking space for citizen election observation ahead of State Duma elections

May 05, 2021

Opportunities for independent citizen election observation and civil society space in general have been shrinking steadily in Russia over the past decade. There are no provisions for direct accreditation of citizen observers and legislative changes, such as the laws on foreign agents and 'undesirable foreign organizations', further restrict the space for citizen observation. Read more on the conditions for citizen election observation in Russia ahead of the 2021 Duma Elections in our latest publication.

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Armenia European Institutions 'Broadly Welcome' Armenia’s Proposed Electoral Reform

April 28, 2021

On April 21, 2020, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe and OSCE/ODIHR published their Draft Joint Urgent Opinion on an electoral reform legislative package in Armenia that is expected to pass ahead of the announced early parliamentary election. The Joint Urgent Opinion understands the urgency of eliminating district seats, noting that it followed many years of consultation on the issue, and comments on several aspects of the reform bill. Details on these in our Policy Alert.

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Poland Social media monitoring report 2020 presidential election

April 08, 2021

Restrictions imposed on freedom of movement and freedom of assembly due to the COVID-19 pandemic during the first round of the election forced presidential candidates to run their campaign mostly via traditional and social media. PAF found that media outlets were far more active on Facebook than candidates. Candidates had a relatively limited ability in reaching wider audiences and will have to diversify their channels of communication beyond social media to reach other voters.

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Belarus Human Rights Situation in Belarus: April 2021

Criminal prosecution for political reasons continues in Belarus and volunteers and lawyers from Viasna revealed numerous violations of the principles of a fair trial and procedural rights and guarantees of the defendants. More than 360 political prisoners are currently held in prisons. Of extreme concern are the numerous facts of cruel treatment of individuals detained and subjected to administrative detention for participating in peaceful assemblies.

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EPDE Round table summary: Armenia – Does the early election endanger the electoral reform?

On 25.03. EPDE hosted an online round table discussion on the ongoing electoral reform in Armenia. Following Prime Minister Pashinyan’s announcement on reaching an agreement with the opposition to hold snap parliamentary elections on 20 June this year, initial concerns arose over what this might mean for the continuation of the electoral reform process. A broad political consensus and a strong public demand for reforms have helped push through some urgent reforms before the snap election campaign.

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Armenia Momentous reform – no more district seats

On April 1, a marathon parliamentary session removed district seats from Armenia’s Electoral Code. Eliminating district seats was the flagship policy in the electoral reform bill brought forward in October 2018 by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s first government. That bill failed to attract enough votes to pass, but now it has finally been accomplished. What is so problematic about district seats? What electoral reforms come next? Find out in our latest Policy Alert.

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Georgia Need for agreement between political parties to overcome current crisis and continue the reform process

In a joint letter, civil society organizations in Georgia, including ISFED, urge all political parties to reach an agreement in the next round of mediation to overcome the political stalemate. They call for the opposition to take up its mandate, engage in institutionalized politics and participate in both the development and implementation of reforms.

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Armenia Civil society calls for civilized pre-electoral campaign ahead of snap elections

The upcoming snap parliamentary elections are taking place during an ongoing political crisis in Armenia and civil society have raised concerns over the level of hate speech and calls for violence, which are widespread in Armenia’s political landscape, and appear to be increasing ahead of the snap parliamentary election. They urge the governmental and opposition political circles to refrain from practices that jeopardize democratic principles and undermine human rights values.

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