ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – The European Union has agreed to monitor Ethiopia’s elections in May, nearly five years after Addis Ababa accused the EU’s chief observer in the last poll of helping to spark violence.
The U.S.-based Carter Centre declined an invitation to observe, saying there was not enough time to prepare for the May 23 vote in the impoverished nation on the Horn of Africa.
“(EU foreign affairs chief) Baroness (Catherine) Ashton last week decided to send a full observation team for the elections,” EU ambassador to Ethiopia, Dino Sinigallia, said late on Tuesday on state-run Ethiopian television.
The monitoring team will be 200-strong and have a budget of about $10 million, Sinigallia said.
Next month’s election will be the first since a government victory in 2005 was disputed by opposition parties and some observers. Monitors said the poll fell short of global standards.
Security forces killed about 200 protesters and imprisoned the main opposition leaders in the aftermath of the vote five years ago.
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi had accused the chief EU observer of siding with the opposition and stoking the violence.
Some critics and analysts say that the EU presence at the coming election risked legitimising a fraudulent poll, in a country of 80 million people and more than 80 ethnic groups.
“The mission won’t be able to properly observe,” one analyst, who did not want to be named for fear he would be refused entry to Ethiopia, told Reuters.
3 thoughts on “Carter Center declined to observe next month elections in Ethiopia”
I don’t think the EU is right to take such a decision because there is no any change the wayanes made since 2005, rather they became more notorious in killing, torching and jailing any body they think have strong public support. So the Carter Center is right to refrain its-self from corrupted and lire regime.
Did not the EU refuse to accept the observations of the last observer team they sent. I guess this one has been briefed on the right observations to report.
Also 10 million budget for 200 observers that is 50,000 dollars a person. How can that be justified to the average Ethiopian?
The carter team I guess does not want to risk the embarrassment of the truth coming out as it did last time. It was shame on ex-president carter that no sooner than he had played his designated role in an attempt to silence the Ethiopian masses than they roared loudly in defiance. May peace come to Ethiopia.
Peace
Tesfa
Peace
Tesfa
I believe EU’s decision to send 200 monitors is right. The whole world would have its eyes eyes riveted on Ethiopia. We will have to wait and see the outcome before we make any comment. That’s why the presence of credible monitors becomes all the more indispensible to the democratic process.