11/02/2013 Political Affairs and Democracy
Strasbourg, 11.02.2013 – Today’s opening of 257 election registration centres in Gaza, Palestine, might “pave the way for parliamentary and presidential elections later this year”, according to Tiny Kox (Netherlands, UEL), PACE rapporteur on evaluation of the partnership for democracy with the Palestinian National Council.
Organising free and fair parliamentary and presidential elections is one of the obligations the Palestinian National Council took on when signing its “partnership for democracy” with the Assembly in October 2011, Mr Kox pointed out.
In July 2012 the ruling authorities in Gaza suspended the work of the Central Election Commission (CEC). Recently it was agreed to allow the CEC to begin voter registration in Gaza today, 11 February 2013.
Together with 347 stations which register voters in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, the 257 Gaza stations will allow voters to participate in new parliamentary and presidential elections.
According to the chairman of the Central Elections Commission, the CEC will need four to six weeks to complete the process of entering data on new registrants and prepare the final voters’ list for any forthcoming elections.