Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has expressed concern over Elections Commission decision to introduce e-voting service in the upcoming local council elections.
MDP said that the Party had expressed the concerns over the system in various meetings held with the Commission. The Party added that the discussions on the systems should be carried out on the initiative of the Commission. MDP said the Commission had failed to take into consideration their concerns about the system. But the statement said the Commission had not even responded to the concerns.
MDP said the e-voting systems were a crucial aspect and that MDP will support the system. However, the statement added that public trust in the electoral system was vital, adding that public awareness campaigns had not been carried out on such a revolutionizing change.
MDP statement:
We recognize the importance of having an Elections Commission respected and trusted by the public and capable of conducting e-voting systems successfully. Today the political sphere in the country is wracked by divisions and public has no faith in the independent institutions. Transparency Maldives’ democracy survey had shown that public had no trust in the Elections Commission.
Only a handful of elections had been held since the 2008 Constitution was passed. The Commission had not specified a reason to bring a revolutionizing change to a system that was functioning properly. E-voting system relied on public trust and the Commission bringing in a change without fully understanding the nuances of the situation is fruitless exercise.
The situations in Venezuela, Philippines, Ireland, Netherlands, India and Bahrain underscore the importance of public trust and acceptance in the system. In nations such as Brazil e-voting was fully implemented after conducting massive campaigns nationwide on the system for 16 years. A hacking competition was held in the country in 2009 to further increase trust and acceptance of the system.
Participation of political figures in implementing e-voting system is vital. However, MDP, the largest political party in the country, had not been consulted in the process. We believe that the opinion of political parties, civil society organizations, foreign stakeholders had to be sought to ensure trust in the system.
Even though the country has the technical capabilities to run an e-voting system, it is not wise to run an election on a system that had not been fully tested or had faith of public. We urge EC to hold discussions with stakeholders to understand key issues, level of implementation, research possible issues and share the findings with the public. We urge EC to implement these measures in order to ensure that integrity of the system was maintained.
MDP expresses concern over introduction of e-voting system
