MARAWI CITY ? Delegates and participants of the People?s International Observers? Mission (IOM) witnessed wanton cheating, confusion, and near chaos in today?s election in this city.
Vote-buying and coaching of voters inside election precincts were most rampant with the poll watchers sitting beside voters dictating the names to be written on the ballots.
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WE, members and participants of the People?s International Observers? Mission (IOM) express shock and dismay at the brazen and numerous violations of election laws we witnessed in Lanao del Sur on May 14 and 15. We also grieve that the people of the province were again denied peaceful and credible elections by both the Commission on Elections (and its instrumentalities) and the opposing political interests and clans of Lanao del Sur.
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Preliminary Statement of Asian Foreign Election Observers on the Mission in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
COTABATO CITY — The twenty one observers from the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) have completed their election observation mission and study of the Philippines? electoral system and process. Observers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Thailand spent eight days observing the pre-election situation and Election Day throughout the six provinces of the ARMM, visiting more than 500 precincts. We observed the preparations for the elections at the local level, and the situation before election day by interviewing candidates, election and other government officials, nongovernment organizations, and citizens. We then observed election day, up to the counting of ballots.
By Grace S. Uddin
Davao Today
DAVAO CITY — The day after the elections, threats and harassments continued to occur in some areas in Mindanao, based on the monitoring office of Kalinaw Mindanao, a joint election-monitoring group set up by the government’s Mindanao Economic Development Council Office (Medco).
The Commission on Elections announced that it suspended the elections in three more towns in Lanao del Sur. In a press conference in Manila, Comelec officials said teachers in Butig,…