Somalia's international partners stress need for credible, transparent elections

Somalia’s international partners, on Friday, called for the ongoing elections for the Lower House of Parliament to be completed in a transparent, inclusive, and credible manner before the set deadline of 24 December, Anadolu News Agency reports.

A joint statement was issued by the UN, US, UK, Russia, Turkey, Germany, France, European Union, African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Ethiopia, Finland, Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, League of Arab States (LAS), Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Qatar, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland and Uganda.

“We call for full transparency in all related processes, including selection committee appointments, delegates’ selection, candidate registration, the reservation of seats for women candidates to comply with the agreed 30 per cent quota, and the management of candidate fees,” read the statement.

READ: Bomb blast targets AU peacekeepers in Somalia

After completing elections for 54 senators of the Upper House, Somalia now has to elect 275 members of the Lower House of the People, before moving on to the presidential election.

The statement by Somalia’s international partners came a day after Mohamed Osman Jawari, former speaker of the House of the People, said he was not allowed to contest the ongoing elections.

The country’s election commission has promised to “diligently look at controversies” in the parliamentary polls.

“We call for respect for the right of candidates to stand for election under conditions of genuine and fair competition,” read the statement by the international partners.

“We encourage delegates and candidates wishing to submit electoral complaints to do so through the legal mechanisms established for this purpose.”