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Report/Paper
State Structure and Electoral Systems in Post-Conflict Situations
Careful consideration of the deeply related issues of state structure and electoral systems is essential at an early stage of any peace process. Identifying the requirements of state structure and electoral system design - such as protection of minority identity groups at a national or sub-national level - can help to achieve robust political solutions. This comparative research paper strives to present an overview of the most common issues and most commonly discussed potential solutions in state structure and electoral system design, including federal and unitary states, protection of group and minority rights, protection against changes to constitutionally protected rights, and requirements for efficient government. The paper should provide a useful handbook for negotiators, mediators, and others involved in peace processes.This project was made possible by a generous grant from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign AffairsDownload text-only version (pdf 730kb)Download full version (pdf 1.9mb)
July 06, 2006
Publication
Report/Paper
Moldova Anti-Corruption Assessment Final Report
Moldova Anti-Corruption Assessment Final Report
May 31, 2006
Publication
Book
Delimitation Equity Project - Resource Guide
Countries that delimit electoral districts must designate an entity to carry out this task and a set of rules for this body to follow when engaged in the delimitation process. The task assigned to the boundary authority is the same in all countries: divide the country into constituencies for the purpose of electing legislative representatives to office. The type of boundary authority established and the rules this authority is obliged to follow, however, vary markedly across countries. Few international standards have been proposed to guide the delimitation process. One reason for this lack of international standards has been the absence of any comprehensive comparative study of existing delimitation laws and practices. Although many studies have been devoted to examining electoral systems – their nature, causes, and consequences – and at least one recent book, Establishing the Rules of the Game: Election Laws in Democracies,1 offers an excellent comparative survey of other basic dimensions of electoral law (i.e., who has the right to vote and to be a candidate, who conducts the election and who counts the votes and resolves electoral conflicts), there has been no systematic, comparative study of constituency delimitation laws and practices conducted to date. This study attempts to rectify the deficit.
April 30, 2006
Publication
Survey
Measuring and Improving Citizens' Understanding of the Justice System - Survey of Attitudes Towards the Judicial System Among Court Users in Kosovo
This report details the findings from a first-of-its-kind survey of citizens in Kosovo who have filed a case with the country’s district or municipal courts. USAID commissioned this survey to gauge court users’ attitudes on a variety of issues dealing with the courts specifically and the judicial system more broadly. This survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews between August 2005 and October 2005 with 403 persons who have had experience with Kosovo’s court system. More specifically, interviews were conducted with 124 criminal defendants, 36 victims in criminal cases, 25 lawyers who represented victims, 99 civil case defendants and 119 plaintiffs in civil cases.
February 28, 2006
Publication
Report/Paper
Global Lessons and Best Practices: Fighting Corruption and Promoting the Rule of Law Through Transparency, Openness and Judicial Independence
IFES believes all countries, including China, should publish an annual State of the Judiciary Report that will serve as both an internal and external tool that can be used by multiple stakeholders for multiple purposes, including promoting and systematically reporting on needed reforms and key issues. It should be disseminated to the public at large, as well as to targeted stakeholders, such as the business and human rights communities, bar associations, judges, reformers, policy-makers and donors. We believe the publication and distribution of the report will increase the quality and quantity of concrete information on the judiciary, more transparency, accountability and public awareness, qualitative comparative research and valuable cross-country lessons learned and judicial competition. We invite and challenge you to demonstrate your firm commitment to the important task ahead.
January 19, 2006
Publication
Survey
Measuring and Improving Citizens' Understanding of the Justice System - Public Opinion Survey in Kosovo
This report details the findings from a public opinion survey in Kosovo. The survey was conducted through face-to-face interviews with 1,226 respondents throughout Kosovo between 08 and 26 August 2005. This data has been weighted to be representative of the resident population of Kosovo by region and urban/rural distribution. The objective of the survey was to measure the Kosovo residents’ perceptions and knowledge of the justice sector, including specific legal issues, actors and the court system. USAID’s Justice System Reform Activity in Kosovo conducted a similar survey in 2004, and data from the two surveys is compared in this report to identify trends in the opinion environment in Kosovo. The margin of error for the 2005 survey is plus/minus 2.8%.
January 14, 2006
Publication
Survey
Assessments of the Political Situation in Kyrgyzstan 2005 - Key Findings
An increasing number of Kyrgyzstanis believe that they can change their country’s situation by voting, believe their country’s recent elections have been conducted fairly, and support new methods of ensuring electoral fairness. These include inking voters’ fingers, using transparent ballot boxes and the presence of domestic and international observers. A majority also say some of the seats in parliament should be reserved for women and think changes to the constitution should be approved of by a popular referendum.
December 30, 2005
Publication
Report/Paper
IFES-Lebanon Election Mapping Mission: Interim Report
From early April 2005 to late May 2005 IFES conducted the first phase of an electoral mapping mission in Lebanon to enable the development of an effective follow-on electoral assistance strategy in a political environment where none had previously been provided...
September 29, 2005
Publication
Report/Paper
Effective Electoral Processes and Peaceful Political Transitions
IFES has been engaged in a broad range of election assistance activities since August 1998 to support Indonesia’s remarkable emergence as a robust democracy. In its most recent project, IFES provided advice and support to the relevant government bodies responsible for establishing an impartial and effective election administration in Indonesia, promoted transparent electoral and legislative processes and effective participation by citizens, and supported a peaceful transition under an amended constitution. The project was active from April 2003 through September 2005. Activities were based on IFES’ on-going observations, assessments, and experience in Indonesia since 1998 and they addressed key objectives in the electoral environment: 1) Help appropriate Indonesian organizations build an impartial and effective electoral administration, voter information capacity, and legal frameworks. 2) Unofficially inform voters and the public of the election results and verify information from the General Election Commission (KPU).
September 29, 2005