Share & more
The Eritrean National Assembly on Thursday ratified the draft law on elections, ushering in the first step towards parliamentary elections in the country.
On the third day of its session, the National Assembly chairman, President Isayas Afewerki, also elected Ramadan Muhammad Nur - the former secretary-general of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) - to head a five-member electoral commission.
Parliamentary elections, scheduled for December 2001, were postponed as the law had not been endorsed.
According to Eritrean radio, the National Assembly discussion on the law was "thorough and heated". Some amendments to the draft were made giving the military the right to be elected. Other provisions of the law include 30 percent of the seats reserved for women, and the non-eligibility of "those who commit treason" to vote or to be elected.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions