PALESTINIAN ELECTIONS
In this section:
Trained Local Observers Watch Over Palestinian
Elections
Young Palestinian Observer Casts His First
Ballot
Trained Local Observers Watch Over Palestinian Elections
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Khalid Nassif, head of an election monitoring team,
on the phone as citizens check their names on a voters’
list at Al Amaari refugee camp.
Chemonics |
Marking the beginnings of a democratic electoral tradition,
domestic observers fanned out across the West Bank and Gaza
Jan. 9 as Palestinians took to the polls to elect a new leader.
Close to 120 Palestinian observers were directly trained
by a USAID program working to strengthen civil society and
democracy. In turn, they taught hundreds of nonpartisan volunteers
how to monitor elections—from the basics of the voting
process to the specifics of what to observe inside and outside
the 1,000-plus polling centers set up in the West Bank and
Gaza Strip.
“The few problems I’ve witnessed were resolved
quickly,” said Khalid Nassif of the Civic Forum Institute,
who coordinated a team of observers in the West Bank. “The
observers and election officials are taking their responsibilities
very seriously to make sure the process is fair.”
Nassif is one of several trainers who helped teach civil
society leaders how to organize and run an election observation
campaign. Participants then transferred their skills to hundreds
of nonpartisan volunteers from grassroots organizations and
universities.
“I wanted to participate in the democratic process
and make it more transparent,” said Rani Khalawi, a 21-year-old
student who donated his time to a small NGO involved in the
observation effort.
All in all, over 100 NGOs—from large, well-established
organizations to small community-based groups—joined
forces through a coalition that deployed some 3,000 domestic
observers in the West Bank and 2,000 in Gaza, according to
Aref Jaffal, head of the Civic Forum Institute, an NGO supported
by the USAID project.
“For many participants, this is the first time they
take part in elections, not only as observers but also as
voters,” Jaffal said.
The enthusiasm of volunteers like Khalawi was only surpassed
by that of first-time voters, especially in refugee camps,
where people spontaneously gathered to share tea, sweets,
and songs outside polling stations.
The Value of Training
Some observers, like Nassif, monitored the first round of
Palestinian local elections held Dec. 23. “This helped
prepare me for my mission during the presidential elections,”
he said. “I learned many things from that experience
that I’ve incorporated into the training I deliver to
election observers.”
Nassif began his day at 5:30 a.m., when he met with a team
of observers to finalize decisions on which stations to monitor.
Once the stations opened, he spent anywhere from half an hour
to an hour at various locations in the West Bank.
In his role as coordinator, he also stepped in to resolve
problems, juggling two cellphones that rang every few minutes.
In the early morning, for example, election officials would
not let observers inside a polling station in Ramallah, unaware
of their role. A couple of phone calls later, the observers
were allowed in, and their day went on without a hitch.
As election monitors made their rounds, the USAID project—known
as Tamkeen or empowerment in Arabic—deployed its own
team of civil society specialists across the West Bank and
Gaza to “observe the observers.” Project staff completed
forms capturing what they saw and are now compiling the results.
Based on a preliminary assessment, “there is clear
evidence that trained observers performed better than untrained
observers,” said Tim Russo, who helped design and launch
the project’s election monitoring initiative. “Observers
trained by either Tamkeen partner NGOs or others were more
engaged and active than those who were not trained.”
A Burgeoning ‘Culture of Elections’
Naji Odah, a social activist in Bethlehem, couldn’t agree
more. “You see the difference between her and the other
observers?” he asked, pointing to Maha Ahmed Issa, one
of 20 volunteers he trained and supervised, based on what
he learned from the project. “She’s taking notes
and has observation forms.”
This was Issa’s first experience with elections, but
probably not her last. “I’m volunteering for the
sake of my country. I want to show that Palestine is the first
democratic country in the Arab world,” said the 19-year-old
university student. “Elections are for the people. The
people vote, so the people should monitor.”
Nassif echoed this sentiment: “As a Palestinian, these
elections are very important to me. We proved to ourselves
and to the world that we have a democratic system and that
we can make our choice in a peaceful, orderly way.”
Though there were some irregularities, such as people not
finding their names on voters’ lists and illegal campaigning
at polling stations, observers—both domestic and international—generally
gave the process high marks.
“Though challenges lie ahead and more training is needed,
the high level of participation from voters and observers
alike is in itself a success for democracy,” said Tamkeen
Chief of Party Mohammed AlMbaid.
The last—and only—Palestinian national elections
were held in 1996, when Yaser Arafat was voted in as head
of the Palestinian National Authority. Next, Palestinians
will cast their vote for members of the Palestinian Legislative
Council and municipal leaders.
Although the election results are in, for Odah the observers’
role has not ended. They must now start advocating for the
next round to help create a “culture of elections.”
Young Palestinian Observer Casts His First Ballot
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Ahmad Al-Azzeh (on right), volunteer observer, and
Tim Russo (on left), Tamkeen’s election monitoring
expert, at a polling station in Bethlehem Jan. 9.
Chemonics |
For 25-year-old Ahmad Al-Azzeh, Jan. 9 was a day like no
other. Starting at 7 a.m. with the opening of polling stations
across the West Bank and Gaza, he spent the next 17 hours
witnessing democracy in action as Palestinians elected a new
leader. It was also his first time casting a ballot.
“This day gives me hope for the future of my country,”
said Al-Azzeh, who volunteered as a nonpartisan election observer.
“There is no way to know that the election is free and
fair unless you see it for yourself. Then you can report back
to your constituents and encourage them to participate.”
Al-Azzeh works for the Holy Land Trust, a small NGO that
runs community development and peacebuilding programs in the
West Bank. He was among close to 120 civil society leaders
trained by a USAID project known as Tamkeen—meaning empowerment
in Arabic—on how to mount election observation campaigns.
Using the skills he learned, he recruited, trained, and led
a team of nine observers deployed at polling stations across
his hometown of Bethlehem.
Al-Azzeh observed the election process at three polling
stations, taking notes, asking questions, and watching history
in the making until the wee hours of the evening. He assumed
his role with a great sense of pride and responsibility.
“As a local observer, the most wonderful sight for
me was when I saw all those people from the different political
factions who were competing throughout the day for voters
settle down and rest—to have a cup of tea with some jokes
and laughs after that long, hard day of work for the election,”
he said.
Although partisan observers were mostly untrained, their
presence at polling stations was crucial, he said. Once ballots
are counted, both partisan and neutral observers are asked
to sign off on the final results. By signing on the dotted
line, they essentially agree that there was no wrongdoing
or fraud.
Election officials are also more motivated to do things
right, he added. “For example, they held up every single
ballot during the counting of the votes so we could see it.
They worked very hard to avoid any mistakes and were applying
legal regulations very carefully.”
As a conflict-resolution trainer working largely with educators
and children, Al-Azzeh said he wants to see more young people
engaged in “building a democratic, independent state
where everyone can express themselves freely.”
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