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News & Updates
Press Release
International Conference Launches Global 'Bill of Electoral Rights for People with Disabilities'
Stockholm, September 17th 2002 -- Disability rights experts and activists, senior election administration officials and international parliamentarians from more than 24 countries met in Sigtuna, Sweden on 14-17th September to draft a global 'Bill of Electoral Rights for People with Disabilities' - the outcome of a first ever effort to bring together concerned parties as equal partners to develop a global initiative in this field. The new Bill of Rights defines and promotes the fundamental rights of people with disabilities in relation to all aspects of the electoral process, in particular: the right to a secret vote, full physical accessibility of polling stations, and full and equal electoral rights for people with mental disabilities.
Election Material
Election and Political Party Law
The Bill of Electoral Rights for Citizens with Disabilities
The "Bill of Electoral Rights for Citizens with Disabilities" calls on states to meet their obligation to take effective measures to ensure that all citizens with disabilities are able to exercise their universal right to participate fully and on equal terms in electoral processes.
News & Updates
Press Release
Ballot Guide Developed for Blind Voters in Ghana
Representatives of the Ghana Electoral Commission and the Ghana Association of the Blind have jointly developed a ballot guide which will allow voters who are blind in Ghana to vote independently and in secret. A prototype of the ballot guide was designed during a two-day workshop in Accra on February 18 and 19, 2002. Also participating in the workshop were representatives of the Ghana Federation of the Disabled, the Ghana Federation of the Deaf, Action on Disability and Development/Ghana, and the International Foundation for Election Systems.
News & Updates
Press Release
Finnish Grant Awarded to IFES' Disability Project
IFES has been awarded a grant from the Finland Ministry for Foreign Affairs to design and pilot test a ballot in Ghana that will enable blind voters to vote secretly and independently. As in most developing nations, Ghanaian voters who are blind rely on assistants to help them vote. The ballot to be pilot tested will not use Braille, but will rely on tactile cues, as less than once percent of blind adults in Ghana are literate. The ballot will be tested in elections in June or July of 2002, and will be designed in collaboration with the Ghana Electoral Commission, the Ghana Federation of the Disability Associations, and Action on Disability and Development of Ghana.
News & Updates
Press Release
Intellectually Disabled Individuals Observe Nicaraguan National Elections
Adults with intellectual disabilities served as election observers in Nicaragua's recent national elections, possibly for the first time globally. Under a project directed by IFES and funded by the Swedish government, the Nicaraguan Association for Community Integration (ASNIC) provided training for over 100 observers with disabilities, 20 of whom were individuals with intellectual disabilities. Managuan special education professor Horacio Ortega designed a three-part training program for these 20 observers. The training included the use of a mock voting table to demonstrate the different roles and responsibilities of poll workers, party agents, observers, and voters.
Publication
Report/Paper
An Action Plan For Electoral Participation of People with Disabilites: Sierra Leone Case Study
The International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) was invited by the National Electoral Commission (NEC) of Sierra Leone to assist in developing a plan to promote the electoral enfranchisement of citizens with disabilities. IFES is a recognized provider of technical assistance in elections and has a particular expertise in the area of empowering citizens with disabilities. IFES has performed work in Sierra Leone since 1999 and is currently providing direct assistance to the NEC in anticipation of presidential and parliamentary elections in December 2001.
June 30, 2001
Publication
Report/Paper
Electoral Participation by People with Disabilities: Peru Case Study
"To be able to participate as an electoral observer in the electoral process of a country is an interesting experience, and as a person with a disability it represents a greater challenge. Most people think that we cannot play an important role in the electoral process; the will to want to do it enhances the commitment. In this experience, I began early in the morning by receiving the observation forms and headed to the pre-selected polling sites where I identified myself as a member of Transparencia. I received gestures of support and perceived doubts. Some poll-workers arrived to their posts very annoyed by the responsibilities that were called on to them to carry out, but when noticing my presence some commented: if you are here and in a wheelchair, what am I complaining about? It is the first time in Peru's elections that we have the opportunity to participate as observers." Maria Nelly Novoa Bellota.
June 30, 2001
Election Material
Ballot
Peru Presidential Ballot 2001
Ballot used in the second round of the Presidential election held in Peru on 3 June 2001. This ballot was to be used by visually impaired voters. The main candidates in the election were Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique (Peru Posible) and Alan Gabriel Ludwig GARCIA Perez (Partido Aprista Peruanu)
Publication
Report/Paper
Electoral Participation of Citizens with Disabilities in Bangladesh
The International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) has begun an effort in Bangladesh to promote greater participation by citizens with disabilities in national elections to be held in the Fall of 2001.
May 31, 2001