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Baroness Nicholson MEP calls on Pakistan to Address ‘Profound Democratic Deficits’

22nd February 2008

Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne MEP today spoke out on the Pakistan elections on her return from Lahore as a parliamentary member of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EUEOM), calling on the incoming Government to address the imperatives of the ‘profound democratic deficits with rigour and determination so that Pakistan’s democracy can finally come of age’.

While maintaining that the election result did represent the ‘will of the people’ she has also highlighted that tens of millions of Pakistani citizens are ‘disenfranchised and debarred from voting’ and was critical of the practice of only allowing those with university degrees to stand for election.

Baroness Emma Nicholson of Winterbourne MEP is a member of both the Foreign Affairs Committee and of the Subcommittee on Human Rights of the European Parliament.  Baroness Nicholson is also the European Parliaments  Rapporteur on the former Princely State Jammu and Kashmir.  Speaking earlier today she stated:

“I welcomed the opportunity to be part of the election as a member of the EU Election Observation Mission to Pakistan.  I spent this historic election day in Lahore where I observed, along with my two MEP colleagues, the voting process in action by spending time in well over 20 polling booths, from 7:30 a.m. up to the results consolidation at city hall at 10:30 p.m.”

“I pay warm tribute to and gained respect for the dedicated and serious work put in by many hundreds of polling station officials, together with the local police and army who ensured that this highly significant and important day proceeded calmly throughout the city.”

“I saw at first hand the absolute commitment of the citizens of Pakistan and the democratic process to cast their votes in a proper way, thus making their will known.  The system has many flaws but nonetheless the will of the people came through.

During her five day EUEOM visit to Pakistan, Baroness Nicholson MEP was part of the delegation that met with President Musharraf and leaders of the main political parties.  At these meeting she consistently raised the question of the disenfranchisement of many women, particularly those from the northwest frontier provinces, where tribal rulings had effectively barred their participation in the election.

Many millions of Kashmiris and Ahmadis were also excluded from voting, and the Baroness also sought to represent the impact of this disenfranchisement when meeting the President and political leaders – reiterating the simple but fitting dictum of ‘no taxation without representation’.

Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne MEP continued:

“As many as 30 million Pakistani citizens are disenfranchised and debarred from voting.  I experienced their pain of these excluded citizens of Pakistan when holding separate meetings during the days before and after the elections with high level professionals from women’s groups, Kashmiris, Ahmadis and others.

“It is also profoundly undemocratic to limit potential parliamentary candidates to only those who have obtained a university degree, a mere three percent of the population.”

“I look forward immensely to seeing the new government, whoever they be, to addressing these profound democratic deficits with rigour and determination so that Pakistan’s democracy can finally come of age.”
END