International community fears violence during election

LONDON: The international community is worried that the coming elections will be affected by sectarian violence, situation in federally administered tribal areas and lawlessness in Karachi, participants said in a Westminster Hall event.
Organized jointly by the Democracy Reporting International Pakistan and Electoral Reform International Services, the speakers discussed Pakistan’s chequered history, long bouts of military rule, Pakistan’s election commission independence and concerns of the international community with regard to the participation of different sections in these elections and what the dangers are. Speakers agreed that Pakistan may be turning a corner for the first time in its 66-year old history as a democratically-elected civilian government in Pakistan will complete its five-year term in March 2013.
Robert Brinkley, former British High Commissioner to Pakistan, and Joe Brinker, Senior Democracy and Governance Advisor, Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), were one of the keynote speakers along with representation from key think-tanks. Vladimir Pran, Country Director of Democracy Reporting International Pakistan, said it was encouraging that Pakistan Election Commission was working hard to ensure that elections are held in a credible manner. He said the 18th Amendment had strengthened the ECP.
“We believe that the coming election will be very challenging for the ECP. At the same time, we recognize that the ECP is independent and will be able to implement elections. It is interesting to see that the change of power will come through elections. Our worry is that the elections will be affected sectarian violence and circumstances in FATA, where we are not sure whether the vote will be credible. We are also looking at how the law and order situation in Karachi will develop. Also, internal displacement is another problem as so far there are no plans for the internally displaced people who remain scattered.”
Lord Nazir Ahmed said that elections in Pakistan should be transparent and fair so that all political parties could take part. “It is important that during these elections, every section of the society should be able to vote and every section should have a fair representation. This will help the international community develop more confidence in Pakistan’s democracy and its institutions and I believe all parties should work together to achieve a historic and clean election and make sure that the transfer of power is smooth.
Author and journalist Zahid Hussain told The News that the international community is hugely interested in Pakistan elections in a few months. “There are usually negative perceptions about Pakistan but these elections will help Pakistan a lot as power will shift from one civilian government to another which will strengthen democratic process. The world wants these elections to be free and fair.”
Separately, Sarwar Bari, National Coordinator for Pattan Development Organisation is also in London and held meetings on Pakistani elections with various organizations. He told these organizations that more than 42,000 election monitors will be deployed on the election day.
He told The News: “One of the major challenges is to implement code of conduct in letter and spirit for disqualifying corrupt, liars and dodgers. Similarly, it is equally essential to make sure results of each and every polling station reflected in the final tally.”