Civil society expressed dismay after the Supreme Elections Committee (SEC) announced the rules it would impose on those organisations it will allow to monitor the parliamentary poll, due to begin on 22 April. In a press conference on Saturday SEC Chairman Samir Abul-Maati named four international monitoring groups — the Carter Center, the Institute for the Sustainability of Democracy in Africa, International Democracy and Election Network in the Arab World — which have been granted permission to observe the ballot alongside 50 local organisations. The same four organisations monitored last year's presidential election. The committee said that 870 licences had been issued allowing staff at the four international organisations to act as observers, and an additional 120 licences issued for translators. Abul-Maati did not elaborate on the criteria used to select the four international monitors beyond stating that they had “good reputation at home and abroad and a history of being impartial and transparent in monitoring elections.” Committee spokesperson Hisham Mokhtar did, however, reveal that all applications had been vetted by a committee that included representatives from the ministries of interior, foreign affairs and social affairs and the General Intelligence Service and that 13 local NGOs had been refused permission because their “lack of expertise”. Last week European Union officials said the Egyptian government had officially requested it, too, send observers. Bernardino Leon, EU special representative for the Southern Mediterranean Region, said a technical team had arrived in Cairo to assess the possibility of sending monitors during the April parliamentary polls, adding that they would not, if they came, be present at polling stations and so would have to rely on the help of local NGOs in following the vote. The SEC said 90,821 representatives from the 50 national organisations it had approved could be granted permission to act as observers. Magdi Abdel-Hamid, chairman of the Egyptian Association for Community Participation Enhancement, says NGOs were asked to submit their applications to the SEC before 15 February, before the president announced the date of the election, and that each NGOs application included the number of observers it wanted to deploy. “Following the approval of applications NGOs were required to submit an online request for each monitor before 5 March. The SEC will then decide whether the individuals are eligible to act as observers or not.” “But is it realistic,” asks Abdel-Hamid, “to allow just a 10-day registration period for more than 90,000 observers?” The SEC, which has stated only that observers be over 21 and of good character, is due to issue IDs for those it accepts by 20 March. For the last two years the National Council of Human Rights, a government appointed QUANGO, had been tasked with choosing local monitors during the parliamentary and presidential elections. Ahmed Samih, director of Al-Andalus Institute, which will monitor the election, says that the SEC-imposed timetable adds unnecessary complications. “The SEC should have extended the deadline for submitting the online applications in order to give the organisations enough time to register their observers. We are in a race against time for no reason,” he said. He added that his organisation is organising training courses for thousands of observers to monitor the coming parliament election. Despise reservations most organisations are busy preparing the required papers. Abdel-Hamid said his organisation plans to work with thousands of volunteers on the ground to report any violation during the electoral process. “Students and ordinary citizens working with us will be able to report violations by sending SMSs from their mobiles,” he said. The election will be held in four stages, starting on 22 April and ending on 27 June. The House of Representatives will comprise 546 seats, 364 contested through lists and 182 allocated for independent candidates.
