The start up of voter registration

Voter registration commenced on 20 June in Kinshasa.

Some 1.35 million of the estimated 1.5 million voter population registered during the voter registration period.

(c) Voter registration in preparation for the forthcoming elections

Some 1.3 million voter registration forms have been received.

No major incidents were reported during the voter registration period.

The next step in the electoral process is the publication of the preliminary voter registration roll from 30 June to 2 July, to be displayed at each voter registration centre.

A voter registration drive took place between 25 June and 21 July.

Preparations were already under way in Tokelau for the referendum, including voter registration.

Notwithstanding delays and immense logistical difficulties, the outcome of voter registration is encouraging.

Political parties should therefore be urged to support such automatic voter registration programmes.

Voter registration is scheduled to end on 25 September nationwide however, registration time lines have been extended in several areas, such as Katanga and the Kasais, mainly due to logistical difficulties encountered by the Electoral Commission and the slow rate of voter registration

An operational plan for voter registration has been approved by the National Elections Commission.

Several key tasks must be accomplished before voter registration can commence, including the creation of a data centre the establishment of a warehouse the deployment of county field staff the recruitment and training of voter registration staff and the procurement and receipt of registration materials.

The voter registration process, which took place from 25 April to 21 May, was successful.

By 21 August, 97 per cent of the planned voter registration centres had been opened.

58. The biggest issue relating to the voter registration was the alleged mass registration of ethnic Vietnamese persons who are not Cambodian citizens.

Meanwhile, voter registration started in the two provinces on 21 August and has generally proceeded smoothly.

Voter registration has been progressively extended to the provinces since it started in Kinshasa on 20 June.

The voter registration process, which took place from 25 April to 21 May, was a notable success.

The European Union was deeply involved in the electoral process, both in voter registration and polling observation.

Additional voter registration in preparation for the elections began on 7 May and will last until 21 May.

56. The voter registration process was generally considered a success as very large numbers of eligible voters registered.

127. During voter registration, the campaign and polling, ethnic Vietnamese faced discrimination and incitement to hatred against them.

Meanwhile, national police officers trained in electoral policing are being used in areas where voter registration is taking place, including for the transport and securing of electoral materials, protection of Independent Electoral Commission officials and voter registration sites and the maintenance of law and order.

The mission noted that challenges remained regarding the completion of voter registration in the Provinces of Bandundu and Equateur.

A petition seeking to extend the voter registration process by a month was also rejected by the Supreme Court.

On 20 June, voter registration began in Kinshasa, and, on 25 July, commenced in Bas Congo and Province Orientale.

The report covered virtually every legal and administrative aspect of the elections, such as determination of constituency boundaries, computer systems, training of electoral staff, voter education, registration of political parties, voter registration, planning for the polling, security arrangements, determination of results, dispute resolution and a budget.

10. Welcomes the intention expressed by the French authorities to resolve in the coming years the question of voter registration

On 12 May, the National Transitional Legislative Assembly adopted a resolution calling for an extension of the voter registration period.

The Electoral Commission established calling centres to address questions from the public on the conduct of the voter registration update.

Complaints regarding the voter registration process, campaign process and polling were followed up by COHCHR with the relevant election commissions.

However, as registration activities progress, the Commission and MONUC are stretched to their limit as they face the multiple demands of opening and servicing thousands of isolated voter registration sites.

The Independent Electoral Commission, with the assistance of MONUC, has identified 9,000 voter registration centres across the country and the recruitment and training of the 40,000 registration officers has begun.

Despite calls by UDPS for a boycott of voter registration, this process has continued in Katanga in a generally peaceful fashion.

The extensive logistic assistance provided by the Organization Mission has been vital in ensuring the implementation of the voter registration process.

Following the commencement of the voter registration process, political parties increased their activities, including by holding primaries to elect presidential candidates.

(b) One United Nations Volunteer post is requested for a Civic Education Training Specialist to conduct civic education programmes at the sub communal level and to train new staff to be deployed to the field, as well as polling staff and voter registration staff, particularly in new voter registration technology.

The Organization of American States, which is responsible for conducting the registration exercise and creating a permanent voter roll, was expected to install the necessary equipment at all registration sites for the launch of the nationwide registration process on 25 April.

Following negotiations initiated by UNHCR with the National Elections Commission, returning refugees were allowed an additional two week period for voter registration.

In particular, measures must be taken to make up for the delays in voter registration in the provinces of Equateur and Bandundu.

46. The Special Representative was also informed about the widespread collection of voter registration cards from persons who had registered to vote.

Encourage the Government and IEC to take the necessary measures to ensure that voter registration is conducted fairly in all of the provinces, including by extending registration time lines, as appropriate, to ensure that registration rates in all of the provinces are commensurate.

The technical and logistical difficulties encountered in the first phase of the elections, including errors in the voter roll, invalid voter registration cards and inadequate transportation to the polling stations, were mostly overcome in the second phase.