Kathmandu, April 1:

Former US president Jimmy Carter will be among a few international top dignitaries monitoring the Constituent Assembly polls on April 10.

Carter who is one of the founders of The Carter Centre will arrive in Nepal on April 7 along with his wife Rosalynn. He will lead the centre’s international election observation delegation to Nepal, according to a press release issued by The Carter Centre in Kathmandu.

Dr Surakiart Sathirathai, former deputy prime minister of Thailand will co-lead the delegation. According to the release, the Centre will deploy 60 international observers representing 20 different nationalities during the poll process. While in Nepal, observers associated with The Carter Centre will meet with the Election Commission, political leaders, representatives of domestic and international election observation delegations and others and will monitor the polls on election day, the counting process and handling of challenges.

“The Centre has been concerned about the recent escalation in electoral violence and clashes including the killings of eight Maoist cadres, the assassination of a Rastriya Janamorcha candidate, and the recent bomb blast at a mosque in Biratnagar. The Centre is also concerned about the widespread reports of electoral threats and intimidation, particularly by the CPN-Maoist party,” the Centre said in its release.

Stating that all the parties stand to gain significant domestic and international credibility by conducting a successful election on April 10, the centre has urged all parties to intensify peaceful campaigning efforts.

“I am encouraged to see that the top leadership of the NC, CPN-UML and Maoists have publicly renewed their commitment to a peaceful electoral process,” David Pottie, associate director of the Centre’s Democracy Programme is quoted in the release as saying. “Now is the time to transform these words into action.”