February 2011

Now the Hard Work Begins...

Egyptians celebrate in Tahrir Square. Photo by RamyRaoof.

Following weeks of protests in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen and Bahrain, thousands in Libya are now advocating for political freedoms long denied by the country's regime. The government has responded with beatings, shootings and arrests. NDI condemned this government-backed violence and joined calls for the immediate cessation of attacks against Libyans who are exercising their right to peaceful assembly, and for a democratic transition.

As democracy advocates raise their voices throughout the Middle East, analysts and commentators have turned to NDI seeking insights into the implications of the ongoing changes for the future of democracy in the region. In The New York Times,

The Washington Post, on CNN and elsewhere, NDI leaders and staff have offered commentary and interpretation as the historic changes have unfolded.

The Institute has a long history in the region. Its first office, for the West Bank and Gaza, opened in 1994. Since then, NDI staff have also been based in Egypt,

Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon,

Mauritania, Morocco and Yemen. Institute programming also encompasses Algeria, Bahrain,

Kuwait,

Qatar, Saudi Arabia

and Tunisia.

In all of these countries, NDI has established partnerships with political parties, civic groups, parliamentarians and others seeking to promote peaceful reform and have a voice in how they are governed. The Institute works to share organizational skills, comparative experiences and tools to connect democratic activists within and between countries.

In response to the developments in Egypt, for example, NDI is putting Egyptian activists in touch with political leaders from Chile, Poland and elsewhere so they can take advantage of lessons learned during other democratic transitions. It's similar to work the Institute has done in many other places and times, such as when it brought opposing Northern Ireland factions together in South Africa in 1997 to learn from Nelson Mandela and others how to negotiate peace and reconciliation.

African Election Roundup: Nigeria, Sudan, Niger

In Nigeria, NDI is conducting an international observation mission to analyze the electoral process before, during and after presidential, legislative and local elections scheduled for April. Regular updates can be found in Nigeria Election Watch, which is based on reports from NDI's long-term observers, who began assessing election activities throughout the country from January and will continue through May. Subscribe»

In Sudan, NDI's civil society partners, the southern-based Sudanese Network for Democratic Elections (SuNDE) and the northern-based Sudanese Group for Democracy and Elections (SuGDE), observed

all stages of the recent referendum

in which Southern Sudan voted to secede from the north. The groups concluded

that "the Southern Sudan referendum allowed the free expression of the will of the people for self-determination."

Read more»

Before presidential and legislative elections in Niger, 36 political parties and two independent candidates signed a code of conduct that encouraged parties and their supporters to campaign honestly and respect the outcome of the Jan. 31 vote and the runoff election set for March 12. Read more»

Women in Afghanistan, Guatemala, Ukraine Overcoming Obstacles to Elected Office

Among the 249 members of Afghanistan's lower house of parliament are Farida Hamidi and Frishta Amini, two women who make up the entire delegation from Nimroz province. Despite the risks faced by female candidates, both women ran strong campaigns and garnered more votes than their male opponents. Read more»

In Guatemala, where indigenous women are 20 percent of the population and hold only one of the nation's 333 mayoralties, Isabel Francisco discusses her campaign for mayor of Santa Eulalia, Huehuetenango. "This is my third time as a candidate," she said. "The first time I finished in fifth place. The second time I finished in third place. This time I'm hopeful I'll win!" Read more»

Zinayida Galchynska promised herself that if she survived breast cancer she would run for local office and make a real difference in her community. She kept that promise and is now a councilor in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine — thanks in part to the skills she learned at an NDI campaign school and a campaign based on going door-to-door to meet voters. Read more»

NDI President Urges International Support for Belarusian People

NDI President Kenneth Wollack outlined ways the international community can provide moral support and practical assistance to political and civic leaders, media and ordinary citizens in Belarus, where government forces engaged in a brutal crackdown following failed elections Dec. 19. Wollack was speaking at a Jan. 27 hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs. Read more»

Colombian Municipal Councilors Hone Good Governance Skills

In Colombia, newly-elected municipal councilors generally are expected to learn on the job. To help them gather the skills they need, an NDI program focused on how to identify the needs of their constituents, develop policies to address those needs, and engage with citizens and the media. Read more»

NDI Adds 2010 Afghanistan Elections Data to Mapping Website

Complete data from Afghanistan's 2010 parliamentary elections have been added to

afghanistanelectiondata.org, the Institute's innovative mapping website

. The site now includes data from Afghan elections beginning in 2004, as well as demographic, ethnographic, topographic, security and other information. Visitors can create visual analyses of voting patterns and other assessments, or segment and envisage data and maps in a variety of ways.

Read more»

New NDI Publications

NDI, one of the world's largest publishers of Arabic-language resources and references on democracy support, has just released its latest catalogue. It includes a listing of publications and information on how to order them. Read it in Arabic | English»

Drawing on its 25 years of experience in the women's political participation field, NDI has published a new guide for democracy practitioners to help them develop and carry out effective programs to bring more women into government and politics. Democracy and the Challenge of Change: A Guide to Increasing Women’s Political Participation, helps the user develop, carry out, monitor and evaluate women’s political participation programs. The guide provides a rationale for focusing on increasing women’s participation and includes examples of best practices, case studies and practical strategies.

The new guide, Political-Process Monitoring: Activist Tools and Techniques, explores the work that the Institute and its partner groups have done for legislative, budget-related and campaign-related monitoring, shadow reporting and monitoring government follow-through.

October 2010

Preparing for Election Day - Debating, Educating Assessing

Candidates greet the moderators before debating in Bosnia.

Though the voting part of an election usually takes just a day, months and sometimes years of preparation go into making it a success. There's the preparatory work by election commissions, organizing by political parties, choosing candidates, the campaign itself, training observers, educating and motivating the electorate to participate, and creating an atmosphere in which voters feel safe enough to go to the polls. In many countries where NDI works, the Institute and its partners are involved in one or more of these aspects of election day preparation. Here are some examples:

Leading up to the Oct. 3 general elections in Bosnia, NDI partnered with two major public television stations to present a series of candidate debates.

These events, along with a series of regional town-hall style meetings, were unique for focusing on issues, and the parties' stances on those issues, rather than personal or ethnic attacks and accusations.

As Egypt prepares for legislative elections in November, a new website, www.vote4egypt.com, conveys the importance of voting. It features promotional get out the vote videos, posters and message boards, where users can discuss topics such as how to get voter identification cards and where to vote on election day. The site is part of a larger civic participation effort by the nonpartisan Bridge Center for Dialogue and Development, an NDI partner organization.

A trainer gives a presentation about her political party in Kyrgyzstan.

Before Kyrgyzstan's Oct. 10 parliamentary elections, NDI worked with women candidates and party members seeking to learn new skills needed to be effective candidates, and for gaining leadership roles within their parties.

In preparation for Afghanistan's Sept. 18 parliamentary elections, NDI conducted orientation sessions for more than 1,700 candidates (68 percent of the total), organized training for political parties, ran campaign schools for more than 240 women candidates (62 percent of the total) and provided technical assistance to FEFA, the country's largest domestic election monitoring organization. It also trained more than 36,000 candidate agents across the country to report on election day activities.

In addition to its work with local partners, NDI takes part in pre-election assessments. Recently in Jordan,

Ukraine and Nigeria, the Institute has fielded high-level delegations that have met with election officials, ruling and opposition political figures, civil society groups, journalists and others to assess the electoral environment and recommend short- and long-term improvements in the electoral process.

In Haiti, Citizens Voice Ideas and Concerns about Rebuilding

Haiti's Action Plan for National Recovery and Development is a blueprint aimed at helping Haitians rebuild and overcome the challenges posed by last January's earthquake. To ensure that citizens and local government officials have an opportunity to contribute their own ideas, initiative committees across Haiti are holding meetings to solicit advice from citizens. Read more»

Despite Violence, Voters in Afghanistan Show Commitment to Democratic Process

Although violence marred the electoral process in many parts of the country, millions of Afghans turned out to vote in legislative elections Sept. 18, showing courage and resolve to move their nation toward a more democratic future. NDI's observers released a preliminary statement lauding Afghans for their commitment to democracy while drawing attention to a number of problems with the electoral process. Read more»

New Publications Encourage Women's Political Participation

In many countries, women who want to get involved in politics lack the role models and resources to help them pursue their goals. Two new publications seek to meet those needs and encourage more women to get involved in the political process.

Aimed at young women from the Middle East and North Africa region, Confidence, Capacity, Connections: A Young Woman's Guide to Leadership is a workbook that combines ideas, strategies and advice from experts on pursuing a political career. Read more»

In Bangladesh, Who's Who: Women Leaders at a Glance profiles 134 Bangladeshi women and is designed to provide inspiration and role models to other women aspiring to leadership roles. Read more»

Iraqi National Youth Caucus Works to Turn Youth Priority Issues into Policy Changes

As Iraqis work to create a new government, a group of young people is working to perfect the civic advocacy skills they need to influence how policy is made. Members of Iraq's National Youth Caucus (NYC) came together recently to discuss their strategies for ongoing advocacy campaigns for improving high school and college education and combating the high rate of youth unemployment. Read more»

Central American Leaders See Transparency as Key to Public Security

In El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, more than three quarters of the population thinks public safety is the greatest problem facing the region. Recently, leaders from government, political parties, business, academia and civil society came together to discuss the link between transparency and security in Central America.  At the NDI-supported event, the 150 participants identified and agreed on concrete actions to fight corruption and increase transparency. Read more»

New Partnerships Strive for More Inclusive, Stronger Parliaments

NDI recently signed two memoranda of understanding (MoU) that seek to strengthen parliaments and make them more accountable and inclusive.

In Kenya, NDI and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association signed an MoU to collaborate on efforts to enhance representative government around the world. The association is a group of national and subnational legislatures of the Commonwealth, representing some two billion citizens from all faiths and ethnicities from six continents. Read more»

The MoU signed by NDI and the Guatemalan Congress will allow the two to create initiatives to improve the representation of indigenous people and women in Guatemala's government and to reform laws governing elections and political parties. Read more»

Sept 15, 2010

Happy Democracy Day!

"Democracy is...in our hands." Photo by Kaylene George of South Africa, one of 12 winners of the Democracy Photo Challenge.

NDI wishes you a happy International Day of Democracy, an annual global celebration of human rights, the rule of law and other principles that unite democracies around the world. This day, Sept. 15, was designated by the United Nations to reaffirm the universality of democratic values and recognize the aspirations of people around the world to have a say in how they are governed and make free choices about how they live their lives.

In more than 70 countries around the world, NDI's main mission is to support and strengthen democratic institutions. Here are some recent examples of our work.

In Afghanistan, Supporting Elections with People, Technology

An Afghan voter casts his ballot in the 2009 election

In three days, Afghans will go to the polls to elect members of the Wolesi Jirga, the lower house of the Afghan National Assembly. The Institute is fielding an international observation mission, as well as working with candidates, political parties, polling agents and domestic observers. NDI is also publishing election updates looking at issues surrounding the polls and analyzing conditions on the ground throughout the country.

NDI has also recently updated its internationally recognized website, afghanistanelectiondata.org, which allows users to analyze and visualize election data from 2004, 2005 and 2009, with 2010 data coming soon.

In Kenya, Observing the Constitutional Referendum and Beyond

NDI has actively supported Kenyan efforts to strengthen democratic institutions since 1993.

The country's recent national referendum to approve a new constitution was lauded by international and domestic election observers. The Elections Observation Group (ELOG), a coalition of civic and faith-based Kenyan organizations and a partner of NDI's, observed balloting around the country and released a statement verifying the accuracy of the results,

which they confirmed using a parallel vote tabulation, or "quick count." NDI's board of directors, led by Chairman Madeleine K. Albright, recently met in Nairobi, pledging organizational support in the coming months as Kenyans build the legal framework to support the constitution.

In Kyrgyzstan, Supporting the Electoral Process and Women Candidates

Daschle discusses recent developments and challenges with civic leaders in Kyrgyzstan.

In Kyrgyzstan, citizens recently approved a new and first of its kind constitution in the region that significantly limits presidential power in relation to parliament.

Despite challenges that still lie ahead, the country has made progress on democratic reforms, NDI Vice Chair and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Thomas Daschle concluded following a recent trip to the country.

Now, as Kyrgyzstan looks ahead to parliamentary elections in October, NDI is working with women candidates, training them on campaign and leadership skills, public speaking, and working within political parties to more fully integrate the women candidates into existing party structures.

NDI will also continue its assistance to the Coalition for Democracy and Civil Society, a domestic election observation group planning to monitor the parliamentary elections.

In Liberia, U.S. Congressional Delegation Reaffirms Commitment to Legislative Research

On a recent trip to Liberia, members of the U.S. House Democracy Partnership (HDP) visited the new legislative library that it, NDI and the U.S. Agency for International Development are helping to build. The eight visiting House members also had the chance to attend a town hall meeting in the Liberian town of Kakata. "Our delegation had been invited to attend not as participants, but as observers — as witnesses to Liberia's fragile but maturing democracy..." Reps. David Price, D-N.C., and David Dreier, R-Calif., wrote about the experience.

Read more»

In Jordan, Al-Hayat Addresses Youth Apathy in Political Process

More than 65 percent of Jordanians are under the age of 30, and 43 percent of potential voters are 18 to 25. Youth have historically been excluded from the political process, so the Al-Hayat Center for Civil Society Development has launched a campaign focused on engaging and registering young voters for the Nov. 9 parliamentary elections.

The campaign is based in part on the findings of a survey conducted by Al-Hayat and NDI, designed to uncover young people's attitudes toward political involvement.

Read more»

Women Gain the Confidence, Skills and Network to Win Elections in Lebanon

When Lebanese voters went to the polls this year to select municipal officials, they voted in more than twice the number of women as in 2004, going from 201 elected women to 530. One factor in this dramatic increase was the help provided women candidates by the Shariky program, an NDI project that supports women candidates through training and mentoring.

Read more»

Yemeni Youth Break New Ground in Resolving Tribal Conflict

In Yemen, tribal conflict is a backdrop affecting the country's economic development, governance and national stability. Disputes over land claims and competition for resources and government services often lead to violence and cycles of revenge killings.

NDI helped 40 young men and women under the age of 30 come together in July to form the country's first cross-tribal youth council, which is already helping to solve disputes about school placement and land boundaries.

Read more»

Interviews with NDI Staff Present an "In-Country Perspective" in Mexico, Rwanda

Mexican Civic Groups Bring Public Security Concerns to Politicians

Julian Quibell, who directs NDI’s programs in Mexico, sat down for an interview on how NDI is bringing civil society and candidates for local office together in a collaborative dialogue to help address Mexicans' concerns about security, violence and organized crime.

Read more»

In Rwanda, NDI Promotes Political Party Dialogue and Peaceful Competition

Fifteen years after the genocide that devastated Rwanda, the country is still dealing with its lasting impact on politics and governance. Prior to the presidential election, we sat down with Gaston Aín, then country director in Rwanda, to learn more about the political landscape, the role of young people and NDI's work with political parties.

Read more»

Democracy Is... Initiative Celebrates Winning Photos, Videos

"Democracy is the state of being free to act and look different from the way others do." Photo by Kaveh Baghdadchi of Iran, one of 12 winners of the DPC.

The Democracy Is... initiative is celebrating the winners of the Democracy Photo Challenge and Democracy Video challenge today in New York City.

"As a photographer, I am inspired by the quality of the content we've seen in the Photo Challenge," said jury co-chair Louie Psihoyos, Academy Award-winning documentary director and photographer. "But it is as an activist that I am most moved. These images allow us to experience life through the eyes of another and better understand how they experience democracy."

The Photo Challenge winners were asked to complete the phrase "Democracy is..." with an image and caption. Twelve winning photos were chosen by the public on Picasa, and are now on display at the United Nations in New York City. See the winning photos»

The Video Challenge participants completed the same phrase with a three-minute video. This year's winners were in New York for the celebration as part of their grand prize. They hail from Colombia, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Nepal and Spain. Watch the winning videos»