Kathmandu, March 20

The European Union Election Observation Mission for Nepal’s House of Representatives and Provincial Assembly elections today submitted its final report to stakeholders with 29 proposals for electoral process reform.

Chief Observer of the EU EOM Željana Zovko, also a member of the European Parliament, presented final report to the government, Election Commission, political parties, observers and civil society organisations.

“I am very pleased to present our final report as it brings together the findings and analysis of our observations over the period the mission was in Nepal, as well as Comprehensive recommendations for future elections,” said Ms Zovko at a press conference.

She said the European Union remained committed to working with Nepali partners on strengthening the democratic process of the country and would  continue to take a keen interest in the electoral reform here in the coming months and years.

She said that provincial and parliamentary elections held on November 26 and December 7 last year was a key milestone in the implementation of the 2015 constitution, with the legal framework providing a good basis for the conduct of elections.

The report stated that the EC performed its duties impartially but its activities lacked transparency. “There was no mechanism for regular consultations with election stakeholders and the ECN failed to publish critical information on polling centre turnout and invalid votes. There were also procedural weaknesses, particularly in relation to the reconciliation of ballots,” the report stated.

Voter education was also inadequate and in some areas non-existent. Despite a series of violent attacks against candidates, the right to vote and to stand for election, and freedoms of association, assembly and expression were well-respected in elections, according to the report.