Iraq’s elections… Unprecedented UN presence brings hope to voters

In this context, the United Nations Iraqi mission erected huge murals in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on which were written, in the two official languages ​​of Iraq, Arabic and Kurdish as well as English, educational phrases and motivating slogans for the Iraqi voter, about the necessity of his participation in the elections, and citizens not to waste their precious votes, and exercising Their right to self-determination and the fate of their country.

In the center of the murals, in bold, he wrote the following main slogan: “The future of your country needs your voice,” with sub-slogans such as: “We vote for Iraq.”

In a post on its digital platforms, the UN mission UNAMI said: “The murals have started appearing in Baghdad areas and will soon spread to other parts of the country, to remind Iraqis of the importance of voting on October 10. If you see one of them, post a personal picture next to it with the hashtag #Vote_for_Iraq, with the aim of encouraging citizens to vote.”

On the importance of the international role in monitoring the Iraqi elections, Dr. Ali Aghwan, professor of political science, said in an interview with Sky News Arabia: “The role of the United Nations in the Iraqi electoral process is very important, no doubt, at the level of oversight and follow-up, and at the executive level in general. In general, for example, it allocated large sums of money to protect and support the electoral process, and sent international observers for the purpose of consolidating the democratic and electoral process.

The Iraqi university professor explains the background of the massive international movement in support of the Iraqi elections, saying: “The UN organization feels a legal and moral responsibility on its shoulders, given that its pivotal role falls within the context of correcting democratic paths in various countries around the world, and in this direction it seeks to have A positive and active role in supporting the democratic process in Iraq and the region as a whole.

Aguan adds: “The situation in Iraq is very worrying for the United Nations and the international community as a whole, and that is why it is trying to consolidate the democratic option in it, so that things do not break out and go towards fighting and chaos, and for this the United Nations is keen to have a peaceful transfer of power, in accordance with a democratic and secure electoral climate. smooth and eliminate negative and extremist influences, such as uncontrolled weapons, political money, and so on.”

And about the impact of the active UN presence on the scene in motivating people to participate in elections and dispelling their fears of fraud and manipulation, he says: “It is possible to talk about messages of partial reassurance sent by the United Nations to Iraqis, to urge them to vote, but the Iraqi frustration is great and exacerbated, as a result of the accumulation of administrative and political failure and poor services in the country, but despite this, the UN organization is trying to re-establish confidence between the authority and the citizens, and between the electoral fund and the voters, in order for there to be a real democracy in Iraq.”

Iraqi citizen Yassin said, in an interview with “Sky News Arabia”: “Slogans are beautiful, but the lesson is in the realistic application, throughout the previous election cycles in the country, and we hear and see such murals and ornate electoral propaganda, but our livelihood reality is increasingly backward and regressive after all. Unfortunately, elections.

He adds: “Frankly, we have lost hope for change and improving our conditions. Participation in the elections is in fact the absence of it. Big talk and lavish promises to people, by parties and candidates, quickly evaporate after the polls are closed.”

The United Nations Mission in Iraq, UNAMI, organized for the first time a few days ago a digital dialogue with Iraqi voters, via the Internet, during which the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations in Iraq and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, UNAMI, Jenin Hennis-Plasschaert, interviewed voters on the Internet. Iraqis directly to listen to their ideas and aspirations about the elections, and exchange views with them.

It is worth noting that UNAMI is a United Nations political mission established to assist, support and advise Iraq, and was established pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1500, which was adopted on August 14, 2003.

The United Nations Security Council had unanimously decided, at the end of last May, to extend the work of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq “UNAMI” for a full year and to expand its mandate and mandate, to include monitoring the Iraqi general elections scheduled for October 10 of this year, in response to a request Iraqi government.

Resolution No. 2576 stated that the work of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq – UNAMI was extended until May 27, 2022. And that the mission would include a strengthened and strong UN team, and additional teams before the upcoming elections in Iraq, to ​​monitor the Iraqi election day on the widest possible geographical scale.

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source https://pledgetimes.com/iraqs-elections-unprecedented-un-presence-brings-hope-to-voters/