The EU EOM also appreciated that the Registrar has adopted its recommendations to improve the electoral process for the first round
Spanish MEP Javi López during the conference May 29 election in Colombia. Photo: @javilopezEU Twitter.
On Tuesday, May 31, two days before the first round of the presidential elections in Colombia, The European Union Electoral Observation Mission published its preliminary report on the electoral day of last Sunday, May 29,, in which, although it highlighted how the elections took place calmly and peacefully, also criticized the decision of the Attorney General’s Office to suspend only elected officials for participating in politics and not figures such as General Eduardo Zapateiro.
In the report, the head of the EOM of the European Union, the Spanish MEP Javi López, began by highlighting the smooth running of the presidential elections and positively assessed the transparency and correct implementation of the electoral procedures at the polling stations.
“We must make a very positive assessment of the elections that were held in a peaceful and pluralist environment and that served to dispel mistrust,” said the MEP, adding that “the Registrar’s Office adopted a series of improvements in its processes, such as the double transmission and typing of the acts, the new selection of juries and the improvements of their training programs, among others.”
And although he highlighted the above, he also warned that the elections of the last Sunday they took place in a context of growing mistrust in the electoral process, “consequence of the inaccuracies verified in the preliminary and unofficial results (precount) of the legislative elections and the narratives of possible fraud deployed by both the left and the right, at different stages of the general elections”.
On the removal of elected officials, in the report the head of the mission said that it is contrary to international standards:
“In our eyes, it is debatable that the constitutional provision, which prevents some categories of public officials from participating in electoral campaigns, is applicable to elected officials. If it is questionable in the eyes of the Colombian legal system, of its Constitution, it seems to us that it is contrary to international standards in terms of political participation.”
He recalled that “the dismissal In addition, by an administrative authority, as is the case, it has also been considered a violation of the American Convention on Human Rights by the IACHR in a ruling binding Colombia”.
Now, in the case of the commander of the Armed Forces, General Eduardo Enrique Zapateiro, the report warns that “no sanction has yet been applied to the commander of the armed forces who, in open violation of the Constitution and a long tradition of non-interference by the Colombian army in politics, made public statements against a candidate.”
Regarding the recommendations that the mission made to the Registrar’s Office, after the legislative elections of March 13, the report highlighted that “a series of improvements were adopted, such as the double entry of data from the minutes and other measures of verification of the accuracy of the count. It also carried out a new selection of jurors and improved its training program. And what is more important, he tried to agree with the political parties on the design of key documents, such as the results reports, and the adoption of certain procedures that were criticized during the legislative elections, such as the witness registration system. The Registrar’s Office demonstrated high levels of organization and professionalism in electoral preparations, both nationally and in the departments and municipalities”.
The full report can be read below :