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Encyclopaedia Preventing Election-related Violence Factors that may trigger electoral violence Internal factors Registration

Problematic registration of political parties and candidates

Political parties usually require registration with the body in charge of conducting elections. Basic registration requirements may include providing information on party identity, programme documents, evidence of popular support, geographic coverage, financial viability and so on. Basic registration requirements for political party candidates may include proof of eligibility to vote in a given electoral district and additional information, such as financial statements.

Registration requirements can, however, be used as an instrument for excluding groups or individuals from electoral competition and participation in power sharing. Exclusion from electoral processes through the denial of registration can provide incentives to excluded groups to turn to violent means in pursuing their political interests. In many situations, psychological and physical violence is used to prevent candidates standing for elections.

Empirical cases:

Turkey parliamentary election 2011. In December 2009 the Constitutional Court decided to ban the Democratic Society Party (DTP), a pro-Kurdish party.[1] The Court alleged that the DTP were connected with the terrorist-affiliated Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The DTP’s supporters, mainly of Kurdish origin, perceived the banning of the DTP as a further step in the Turkish government’s repression of the country’s Kurdish minority. This led to demonstrations, mainly in the south-east, which is predominately inhabited by Kurds. There were reports of stone-throwing demonstrators clashing with riot police.[2]

Interrelated factors: social and political exclusion (external);[3] presence of non-state armed actors (external);[4] gender-based discrimination and violence (external);[5] human rights violations (external).[6]

Russia parliamentary election 2011. The liberal Party of People’s Freedom (PARNAS) was refused party registration prior to the 2011 parliamentary elections. It was alleged that party members and supporters were intimidated with a view to making them either resign from their posts or to taking their names off the party list.[7]

Interrelated factors: human rights violations (external); presence of non-state armed actors (external);[8] gender-based discrimination and violence (external).[9]

Philippines legislative and presidential election 2010. The election campaign was marred by violence. On one day alone a group of 57 people, including relatives of local politicians, lawyers and journalists, were abducted by armed men from a faction with alleged ties to the incumbent President, and later found dead.[10]

Interrelated factors: presence of non-state armed actors (external);[11] human rights violations (external).[12]

[1] United States Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Djibouti 2013 Human Rights Report : https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/220318.pdf

[1] European Commission, ‘Turkey 2010 Progress Report’, COM(2010)660, 9 November 2010, pp. 7, 21, available at <http://ec.europa.eu/enlargement/pdf/key_documents/2010/package/tr_rapport_2010_en.pdf>.

[2] CNN, ‘2 Demonstrators Killed in Clash’, 15 December 2009, available at <http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/12/15/turkey.kurds/index.html?iref=allsearch>.

[3] Human Rights Watch, ‘Turkey: Kurdish Party Members’ Trial Violates Rights’, 18 April 2011, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/04/18/turkey-kurdish-party-members-trial-violates-rights>, accessed 28 September 2011.

[4] Human Rights Watch, ‘In Turkey, He Loves You, He Beats You’, 15 June 2011, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/06/15/turkey-he-loves-you-he-beats-you>, accessed 28 September 2011.

[5] Human Rights Watch, ‘In Turkey, He Loves You, He Beats You’.

[6] Human Rights Watch, ‘Ignoring Rights in Turkey, and Its Cost to Everyone’, 21 November 2010, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2010/11/21/ignoring-rights-turkey-and-its-cost-everyone>, accessed 28 September 2011.

[7] CNN, ‘Russia Refuses to Register Liberal Party; U.S. “Disappointed”’, 22 June 2011, available at <http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/europe/06/22/russia.party.elections/index.html?eref=edition_europe&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fedition_europe+%28RSS%3A+Europe%29>, accessed 7 September 2011.

[8] Human Rights Watch, ‘Caucasian Prisoners (or How Not to Deal with Militancy in Dagestan)’, 2 March 2011, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/03/02/caucasian-prisoners-or-how-not-deal-militancy-dagestan>, accessed 7 November 2011.

[9] Human Rights Watch, ‘Russia: Chechnya Enforcing Islamic Dress Code’, 10 March 2011, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/03/10/russia-chechnya-enforcing-islamic-dress-code>, accessed 7 November 2011.

[10] International Crisis Group, ‘The Philippines: After the Maguindanao Massacre’, Asia Briefing no. 98 (21 December 2009), p. 1, available at <http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/asia/south-east-asia/philippines/b98%20The%20Philippines%20After%20the%20Maguindanao%20Massacre.ashx>.

[11] International Crisis Group, ‘Philippines: Pre-Election Tensions in Central Mindanao’, Update Briefing, Asia Briefing no. 103 (Jakarta/Brussels, 4 May 2010), available at <http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/Files/asia/south-east-asia/philippines/B103%20Philippines%20-%20Pre-election%20Tensions%20in%20Central%20Mindanao.pdf>, pp. 1, 3, 5, accessed 29 September 2011.

[12] Human Rights Watch, ‘Philippines: More Talk Than Actions on Human Rights’, 25 January 2011, available at <http://www.hrw.org/news/2011/01/25/philippines-more-talk-action-human-rights>, accessed 7 November 2011.

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Problematic voter registration

Problematic registration of political parties and candidates

Problematic accreditation of domestic and international observers