Archive for the ‘Electoral System’ Category
Controversy between ONPE and JNE could cause delays in electoral calendar
The controversy between the National Election Board (JNE) and the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE) could frustrate the calendar for the scheduled April 9 elections. Until the JNE determines who can run in this election, the ONPE cannot print the ballots. That, at least, is what the officials from ONPE appear to be saying. The JNE is saying the 90 percent of the ballots can be printed now. ONPE says this is wrong, that all the material must be printed at once. According to ONPE, the JNE has approved the final list of names for the presidential ballot and the Andean Parliament, but has not produced the final list of candidates to the congress. Without the definitive list, the ballots cannot be printed.
Aprobados 20 millones de soles para la franja electoral
El Congreso aprobó ayer la autorización a la Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) de utilizar 20 millones de soles de su presupuesto para la implementación de la franja electoral en los medios de comunicación no estatales.
Enrique Bernales on electoral process
55 Candidates Rejected by National Election Board
55 congressional candidate have been told their papers are not in order; if they want to run for office they must get their documents to the National Election Board in time for an appeal. Candidates who hold public office must show they are on unpaid leave. The JNE decided to require that candidates provide documentation to this effect in a decision published on February 3, only 5 days before the deadline to register. Fernando Tuesta, former director of ONPE, said the JNE is being legalistic and bureaucratic in some cases. Legal paperwork should not override the constitutional right to be elected. The ONPE is worried that the large number of rejections and appeals could result in serious delays, and has called for the JNE to resolve the cases as quickly as possible. ONPE does not want to print the ballots until all the candidates are finalized. Otherwise, candidates could appear on the ballots who are, in effect, ineligible for office. The ballots and accompanying instructional material must be distributed across the country in a timely manner. Ballots are supposed to be finalized on March 15.
Nueva Ubicación de los Partidos en Cédula Única
Source: La República, 1 de marzo del 2006
Mediante un sorteo público se decidió la ubicación de los partidos y organizaciones que participarán en el proceso electoral del próximo 9 de abril. 21 organizaciones presentaron lista presidencial y lista al Congreso, y 3 al Parlamento. El Partido Socialista, que lidera Javier Diez Canseco, será el primero en la relación de las organizaciones incluidas en esta cédula electoral que, con un largo de casi 45 cm., será la más extensa de todos los comicios anteriores.
Informe de Transparencia: Total desinformación electoral de los medios
Source: La República, 28 de febrero del 2006
Según el último informe elaborado por la institución Transparencia, solo el 8.16 % de las informaciones que se han publicado en el primer mes de campaña en los diversos medios de comunicación se han referido a los planteamientos de los partidos políticos en carrera electoral. Se evaluaron 54 diarios (13 de Lima y 41 de 19 ciudades), y se llegó a la conclusión de que la mayor parte de los medios escritos se ocupa más de las declaraciones y denuncias en medio de la campaña (sobretodo de los escándalos), que de los planes de gobierno.
Headaches for Election Authorities
The National Election Board (JNE) has approved the use of a single ballot for elections for the president, congress, and Andean Parliament on April 9. The Board rejected arguments by the FIM and Peru Posible in favor of splitting the ballots into two separate lists. Neither the FIM nor Peru Posible are running presidential candidates. The other parties have presidential candidates, and they want to be sure that once the voter has chosen the president it will be as obvious as possible who to support for congress on the same ticket.
The National Organization of Electoral Processes (ONPE) had originally proposed a double ballot in which the president was on one paper and then there was another paper which listed all the candidates to the congress and the Andean Parliament. The double ballot proposal would have marked a departure from past practice. It was not sustained with clear arguments, and the proposal was not properly vetted by the political parties. The parties, fearing that the separation of presidential and congressional ballots could lead voters to split tickets, challenged the decision. The National Election Board upheld the challenge and told the ONPE to go back to the drawing board. The ONPE has done so, and the single ballot (one piece of paper with three lists on it) is the result.
The whole issue would pass as a minor glitch were it not for the fact that president Toledo waited until very late–early December–to call the election. As a result, the time table is very tight. The ONPE has to have all the ballots printed and ready for distribution a month prior to the election. In addition to the ballots, all the instructional material for the polling stations has to be prepared, and all the election day workers have to be trained. What is more, the decision on the ballot does not leave the ONPE free and clear yet–there are still all the challenges against various congressional candidates to be resolved, which should take until some time next week.
Transparencia and IDEA Forum on Military and Police Voters in Peru
Maxwell A. Cameron
February 26, 2006
Under the auspices of IDEA and Transparencia, a working breakfast on “Military and Police Voters in Peru” was held on Thursday, February 23, 2006. What follows is a brief summary some of the key issues and conclusions to emerge from the discussion. Participants holding public office (see list below) spoke on a not-for-attribution basis.
Photo: J. Bazo
The armed forces and police will vote for the first time in modern Peruvian history in the elections for president, congress, and Andean parliament on April 9, 2006. It is estimated that there are 150,000 potential voters in uniform (roughly 62,000 members of the armed forces, and 87,000 members of the police), but only 84,000 are enumerated on the list of eligible voters.
Of the total potential voters in the armed forces and police, as many as 46,000 may be unable to vote due to assignments on election day. There will be over 4,200 voting stations throughout Peru, and about 10 police or soldiers will be assigned to each station. Military and police personnel may be under orders of restricted mobility, which mean they are obliged to remain at their post (for example, guarding a school where people are voting) during the day. They may not have time during their breaks to make their way to their own polling station before balloting closes.
Enrique Bernales. Photo: J. Bazo
Enrique Bernales emphasized the seriousness of the problem, saying that some members of the military and police have been “given the right to vote but are not permitted to use it.” The issue is especially sensitive since one candidate, Ollanta Humala, is a retired military officer who claims to have support within the armed forces.
Fernando Tuesta. Photo: J. Bazo
Fernando Tuesta said that the extension of the vote to members of the armed forces needs to be accompanied by a scaling back of military involvement in the organization of elections. A smaller number of police and soldiers could protect the perimeter around each polling station rather than being posted in each room where balloting takes place.
A more efficient allocation of military personnel will not solve the problem of members of the armed forces stationed in areas far from home who have not renewed their national identity cards (DNI). Since the election list was closed in December 2005, there is no way for such individuals to vote in this election. However, as Rafael Roncagliolo noted, it is important to identify problems that can be addressed in the post-electoral period. There will be elections in November 2006 for regional and municipal governments, and the list of voters will not be closed until July.
Rafael Roncagliolo. Photo: J. Bazo
Percy Medina suggested that measures could be taken to make is easier and quicker to get a new identity card. Participants recognized that measures to expedite the renewal of identity cards would benefit both civilian and military voters. In addition to the armed forces and police, other potential voters face impediment to the exercise of the suffrage. Prison inmates who have not been sentenced are legally entitled to vote yet there are no polling stations in prisons. Like the military, medical staff and journalists work on election day.
Percy Medina. Photo: J. Bazo
The total number of voters in the military and police is not large in quantitative terms. They amount to one half of one percent of the total electorate of 16.5 million voters. The tighter the margins of electoral victory, however, the more potentially significant their votes could be. The problem is magnified by the possibility that candidates might use the issue seek to discredit the election result. There is, however, no valid public policy justification for assigning priority to the military vote over other impediments to voting such as the estimated 250,000 people in the highlands and jungle areas who do not have birth certificates.
Participants:
Alberto Adrianzén, Comunidad Andina de Naciones
Engelbert Barreto Huamán, Jurado Nacional de Elecciones
Jorge Bazo, “Peru Election 2006” Weblog
Moises Benamor, Organization of American States
Enrique Bernales, Comisión Andina de Juristas
Eric Bertram, Embajada de Canadá
Maxwell A. Cameron, University of British Columbia
Ana Maria Tamayo, Instituto de Defensa Legal
Luz Marina Vera, Organizacion Nacional de Procesos Electorales
Percy Medina, Transparencia
Luis Nunes, Instituto Nacional Democratica
Ronalth Ochaeta, Organization of American States
Rafael Roncagliolo, IDEA
Luis C. Seghelmeble Riera, RENIEC
Fernando Tuesta, La Universidad Católica
Candidates Disagree Over Latest Denunciation of Chavez’s Meddling
Agustin Haya of the American Popular Revolutionary Alliance (APRA) suggested that the ideological affinity between Lourdes Flores Nano’s Popular Christian Party (PPC) and her social Christian counterparts in Venezuela (COPEI) may have motivated the latter to denounce the supposed efforts by the Chavez government to encourage Peruvians in Venezuela to vote for Ollanta Humala. This Flores hotly denies, saying she has had no contact with the COPEI member who made the accusation. Humala, for his part, played down the possibility that the Chavez government is seeking to influence the Peruvian election by such means.
The Military Vote
More than 47,000 (56%) members of the armed forces will not be able to vote on April 9th. The military vote represents 0.9% of the electorate.
Chavez Helps Humala Win Peruvian Voters in Venezuela?
The Venezuelan government is, reportedly, giving residency to Peruvians living as illegal immigrants in Venezuela in return for voting for Humala. While surely no one puts this sort of thing past Chavez, the allegation is made by his arch-enemies, the Christian Democrats of COPEI, and is presented without any supporting evidence. Moreover, the Peruvian voter list has been closed for months and the vote is, after all, secret.
ONPE Opts for Single List
The whole question of whether there should be one list for voters to mark on election day, or two, might seem at once boring and inconsequential. It is, however, an example of the sort of problem that could be occasioned by incompetence in the electoral authorities, with the consequence that the door could be opened to questioning of the outcome of the election.
Doble cédula de votación de la ONPE es anulada por el JNE
Argumentando que la Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) no siguió los procedimientos de ley para definir la doble balota de sufragio que se usará el 9 de abril, el Jurado Nacional de Elecciones anuló su cédula de votación. Según una resolución publicada en El Peruano, 112-2006-JNE, incumplió con presentar a los partidos políticos el diseño de la cédula y otorgarles el tiempo determinado para que presenten sus impugnaciones u observaciones requisitos de ley; pero la titular de la ONPE, Magdalena Chu, sostuvo que este modelo sí fue consultado a los personeros de los partidos en más de una oportunidad y no hubieron oposiciones al respecto. Se habrían gastado más de S/. 6 millones en la impresión de “material de capacitación” para la aplicación de este doble documento.
Peruvian Nationalist Party: “Electoral Fraud” Possible
According to the newspaper Gestion, the Nationalist Party of Peru will only have confidence in the results of the general elections in April if the European Community (EC) sends an observation mission. The leadership of the Nationalist Party does not trust the Organization of American States or the Peruvian National Election Board to guarantee a transparent election. An EC electoral mission approved Venezuelan legislative elections last year that were boycotted by the opposition. Ollanta Humala has warned of that electoral fraud could happen in Peru. He is concerned that it may be impossible for members of the armed forces to vote if they are stationed far from where they live and are registered to vote. The solution would be to have polling stations for voters in transit throughout the country. Peru does not have a tradition of advance polls.
ONPE utilizará dos cédulas de sufragio
En un hecho inédito y en vista al número record de candidatos a la Presidencia (23 en total), la ONPE ha diseñado dos cédulas de sufragio para evitar confusiones en las próximas elecciones del 9 de abril. En una se elegirá al presidente de la República y sus vicepresidentes y la segunda será para los candidatos al Congreso y el Parlamento Andino.
Compañía Smartmatic: Cumplimos con los requisitos de la ONPE
Tras declarar la ONPE desierto el concurso para implementar el voto electrónico en las elecciones del 9 de abril porque ninguno de los postores subsanaron sus observaciones, la compañía Smatmatic expresó su malestar porque aseguran haber cumplido con los requisitos técnicos exigidos. Esta compañía fue fue vinculada por el programa televisivo “La Ventana Indiscreta” con el régimen del presidente venezolano Hugo Chávez.
ONPE: Rejects Electronic Voting System
By means of a press release, the Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (National Office of Electoral Processes, or ONPE) informed the public that due to technical problems the system of electronic voting would not be implemented in the elections on April 9. Lloyd Axworthy is said to have raised the issue with President Toledo, who is keen to cooperate with the OAS electoral observation mission.
250,000 citizens without birth certificates will not vote on April 9th
Maxwell A. Cameron
January 26, 2006
It would cost $3.6 million to register 250,000 Peruvians–more than all the voters in Villa El Salvador–who live in remote areas of the country and cannot vote because they do not have birth certificates. Yet the executive has not provided the small amount of money necessary for these citizens to be enfranchized. They are poor folk, far from the capital, and they simply don’t matter to Peru’s urban political elite. At the same time, the election authorities are toying with the idea of spending over 50 million soles so that half a million voters in Callao can have the luxury of voting electronically. This is yet another graphic reminder of the impact of inequality on the elections, and the indifference of the state with respect to the rural poor.
Lloyd Axworthy in Lima to Prepare OAS Electoral Observation Mission
Maxwell A. Cameron
January 25, 2006
Lloyd Axworthy is in Lima preparing the groundwork for an electoral observation mission of the Organization of American States (OAS). He is meeting with President Alejandro Toledo, Chancellor Oscar Maurtua, and election officials from the JNE, ONPE, and Reniec, among others. Axworthy is the former Canadian minister of foreign affairs who led a high-level mission to Peru in the aftermath of the problematic elections of 2000. His involvement as an observer of the 2006 elections has symbolic importance because of the key role that he, in conjunction with former Secretary General Cesar Gaviria and the OAS, played in contributing to the transition to democracy in 2000.
The choice of Axworthy to head the mission suggests the possibility that the OAS, now under the leadership of Secretary General José Miguel Insulza, will create an election observation process that that, in addition to ensuring that votes are counted accurately, focuses attention on the agenda for reinforcing democracy that came out of the involvement of the international community in the 2000 election. Unlike in 2000, when the elections failed to meet internationally accepted standards of freedom and fairness, however, the elections this year are likely to be beset by more technical problems. This will be the first election in which members of the armed forces can vote, for example, and the participation of soldiers will create logistical issues. There is also a proposal for electronic voting in Callao, which Cecilia Valenzuela has sharply criticized in the television program Ventana Indiscreta. Finally, 250,000 voters are disenfranchized because they do not have birth certificates and over a million more voters, many of them elderly, cannot vote because they do not have a National Identity Document. The total size of the electorate is 16.5 million.
Las “Hojas de Vida” no sirven para fiscalizar a los candidatos
Source: La República, 24 de enero del 2006. Por Carolina Martín.
Tras anexar el Jurado Nacional de Elecciones en su página web las primeras hojas de vida de las planchas presidenciales de seis agrupaciones políticas: Avanza País, Resurgimiento Peruano, Restauración Nacional, el Partido Socialista, el APRA y el Partido Renacimiento Andino; ha quedado demostrado que los datos que consignan las siete páginas que todo candidato debe presentar al JNE cuando se inscribe como tal, son insuficientes para formar en el elector un completo juico sobre el candidato a la presidencia de la república.
Woodman Election in 2002 Overturned Due to Fraud
Insiders close to Lourdes Flores Nano privately admit that it was a mistake to appoint Arturo Woodman as vice presidential candidate for Union Nacional.
Now new questions are being asked about Woodman. In 2002 he was narrowly elected mayor of Santa Maria, a tiny resort district of Lima, by a margin of just 20 votes (Woodman won 446 votes and his closest competitor won 426). His victory was overturned by electoral authorities after it turned out that 288 persons had changed their residence just prior to the election. Most of the migratory votes went to Woodman. After the suspicious votes were annulled, the victor was declared to be another candidate.
Procedimiento para tachar postulantes
Source: El Comercio, 13 de enero del 2006 (JNE)
24 planchas electorales inscritas es todo un récord
The registration of 24 candidates for the presidency–23 if we consider the rejection of the candidacy of Alberto Fujimori–illustates the fragmentation of Peru’s party system. Many analysts and politicians are expressing concern about the unprecedented proliferation of presidential aspirants.
Source: La República, 11 de enero del 2006
El número de 24 planchas electorales inscritas es todo un récord. Las opciones para este año han superado con creces el número de 17 candidatos que se registró en 1980, que era la cifra más elevada hasta este momento, quedando claro que la proliferación de candidatos afectará definitivamente la calidad de los comicios del 9 de abril. Como era de esperarse, las leyes electorales no pudieron evitar la fragmentación de candidatos, partidos y alianzas, aunque personajes políticos como el presidente del Consejo de Ministros, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, confía en que esa cifra se aminore y permita un número menor de opciones políticas.
Lourdes Flores Nano Registered her Presidential Slate and Government Platform
Photo: La República, Pedro Abad.
La candidata a la presidencia por Unidad Nacional sostuvo que su gobierno priorizará la alimentación, salud, educación, trabajo y seguridad interna Download file
Army and Police May not be Able to Vote on April 9
Maximo Gallo (Tuesta y Consultores) on Regulating Electoral Advertising
According to an analyst with Tuesta y Consultores, ONPE (the public body that manages elections in Peru) needs to do more to enforce rules concerning electoral publicity. To ensure equity, ONPE should contact the media and make public the rates charged to ensure all parties are charged the same.
Fernando Tuesta on Current Electoral Process
Fernando Tuesta criticizes the lax application of the law on political parties, especially with respect to the internal selection of presidential candidates.
According to Tuesta there are 32 parties running 4,000 candidates for congress.
In his book, entitled “Representación política: las reglas también cuentan”, Tuesta calls for a semi-presidential system, with a prime minister elected by congress with the power to appoint cabinet ministers. He also calls for a return to bicameralism and a larger number of seats. Fujimori reduced the size of congress with the specious argument that members of congress did nothing and cost too much money.
ONPE: 17 political parties have forged signatures
Source: El Comercio December 26, 2005
Jorge Bazo
December 26, 2005
Según un informe del diario El Comercio, desde el 19 de junio del 2004 hasta el 14 de setiembre del 2005, la Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) ha denunciado diversos casos de falsificación de firmas ante las distintas fiscalías penales. Hasta el momento han sido denunciadas 17 agrupaciones inscritas, o en proceso de inscripción, ante el Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE), presentando un total de 120,541 firmas falsas, la mayoría realizadas con el mismo puño.
Transparencia: First Report of Election Observation
Primer Informe de Observación Electoral, Consejo Directivo, Asociación Civil Transparencia, December 21, 2005.
ONPE: Revista Elecciones #5
Peruvian Congress reject legislative proposal to avoid turncoatism
APRA proposed legislation to prevent turncoatism in political parties. The bill, which would ask parties not to include on their lists of candidates legislators who had left their political parties, has gone nowhere. Secretary general Jorge Del Castillo suggests this is due to the large number of turncoats in the current legislature. He took the opportunity to note that only APRA has held fully free and open internal elections to choose members of their slates for the congress.
Electoral Alliances for 2006 General Elections
The following alliances registered with the Oficina Nacional de Procesos Electorales (ONPE) on December 10, 2005:
– Alianza Electoral Frente del Centro (Acción Popular, Coordinadora Nacional de Independientes, Somos Perú)
– Alianza por el Futuro (Cambio 90, Nueva Mayoria)
– Concertación Descentralista (Partido por la Democracia Social (PDS), Movimiento Humanista Peruano)
– Unidad Nacional (Partido Popular Cristiano, Renovacion, Fuerza Radical)
– Fuerza Democratica (Fuerza Democrática, Fuerza Loretana)
December 19, 2005 is the deadline to register presidential slates for political parties and alliances.
So far there are 31 political parties ready to run and 14 in the waiting list, representing one of the largest contingent of electoral hopefuls in Peruvian political history.
Key Electoral Deadlines & Characteristics of the electorate
President Toledo calls General Elections for 2006
After a long wait, the Executive called general elections to take place on Sunday, April 9, 2006. If no presidential candidate achieves more than 50 percent of the vote, a second round would take place on Sunday, May 7 2006.
Congress: JNE decisions are not to be reviewed by TC
On Thursday, December 1, Congress, in committee of the whole, approved — after a long delay and extensive public discussions among the JNE, TC, members of Congress and constitutional experts (refer to our archives), that decisions made by the National Electoral Jury could not be reviewed by the Constutitional Tribunal. Congress voted: 64 votes in favour, 7 against and 4 abstentions. This decision would guarantee jurisdictional autonomy and independence to the JNE, according to Congress.
Refer to pages 123-133, Diario de Debates del Congreso, December 1, 2005. Download file
ONPE verified signatures for Ollanta Humala’s party in record time
On November 15, Ollanta Humala presented more than 295,000 signatures to register his party with JNE. In record time (see chart), ONPE took only 10 working days to verify the signatures supporting the application to register the Partido Nacionalista Peruano. So far, 30 political parties are registered to run for April elections.
Source: La República, 30 de noviembre del 2005
Peruvian Constitution – Articule 100: Who cannot run in 2006
Source: La Republica, November 11, 2005
Constitucion de la Republica del Peru
Artículo 100°. Corresponde al Congreso, sin participación de la Comisión Permanente, suspender o no al funcionario acusado o inhabilitarlo para el ejercicio de la función pública hasta por diez años, o destituirlo de su función sin perjuicio de cualquiera otra responsabilidad.
El acusado tiene derecho, en este trámite, a la defensa por sí mismo y con asistencia de abogado ante la Comisión Permanente y ante el Pleno del Congreso.
En caso de resolución acusatoria de contenido penal, el Fiscal de la Nación formula denuncia ante la Corte Suprema en el plazo de cinco días. El Vocal Supremo Penal abre la instrucción correspondiente.
La sentencia absolutoria de la Corte Suprema devuelve al acusado sus derechos políticos.
Los términos de la denuncia fiscal y del auto apertorio de instrucción no pueden exceder ni reducir los términos de la acusación del Congreso.
No exigirán constancia de sufragio ni dispensa en el DNI después de comicios del 2006
Un nuevo cambio en las reglas de juego electoral aprobó el día de ayer el pleno del Congreso: “La constancia de sufragio o la dispensa en el DNI no será exigible para participar en los asuntos públicos previstos en el artículo 30 de la Constitución ni para la realización de los actos civiles, comerciales, administrativos o judiciales o en cualquier acto jurídico”.
En lugar de dar preferencia a los avances tecnológicos como el alcance del voto electrónico a la mayor cantidad de peruanos, se dio vía libre a los miembros de mesa omisos al suprimir el día de ayer todas las restricciones civiles, comerciales, administrativas y judiciales de todos los electores que no se presenten a las elecciones generales del 2006, incluyendo además a los miembros de mesa que no cumplan con su deber cívico.
Magdalena Chú, Jefa de la ONPE lanzó una alerta de ausentismo en instalación de mesas de sufragio con esta nueva ley, que muchos de las ciudadanas y ciudadanos que resulten elegidos como miembros de mesa opten por no asistir a cumplir con este deber cívico y se dificulte la instalación de mesas de votación.
Por otro lado, no prosperó la exoneración de las multas electorales ni se dio visto bueno a la pretensión aprista para dispensar el pago de la multa a los que no votaron en el referéndum regional del 30 de octubre pasado.
JNE: Fujimori can’t run in 2006
El Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) envió un comunicado destacando el hecho de que los funcionarios públicos inhabilitados por el Congreso no pueden postular a la Presidencia de la República. Este documento considera que los candidatos a las elecciones del 2006 deben de tener en cuenta “los requisitos e impedimentos” en la Constitución Política del Perú y en la Ley Orgánica de Elecciones (No 26859), para postular a los cargos de elección.
Aunque este comunicado tiene una alusión directa a Fujimori, recordando su impedimento de postular, el Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) solo se pronunciará sobre su caso cuando el ex presidente presente su candidatura para las elecciones generales del 2006.
Es importante el tener muy en cuenta disposiciones como el inciso “d” del artículo 10 de la Ley No 26859, que dice: “No son elegibles los funcionarios públicos inhabilitados, de conformidad con el artículo 100 de la Constitución”; porque Fujimori cuenta con esta inhabilitación política y por lo tanto, el Congreso está facultado para sancionarlo sin una sentencia judicial.
Are we running out of time to have a fair electoral process?
Today’s editorial from La Republica identifies key steps and decisions that need to be taken to have a fair electoral process in April:
– A general election has not be called yet by the Executive.
– Congress has not put an end to the dispute between the Constitutional Tribunal and the National Electoral Board regarding the reversiblity of the board’s decisions.
– No decision has been made on whether to continue the system of preferential voting.
– Nor has a final decision been taken on whether voting will be voluntary or compulsory.
Elections are just 5 months away and key decisions are being left to the last minute.
JNE versus Tribunal Constitucional: la controversia del Amparo electoral
EL “AMPARO ELECTORAL”: ¿CUÁL ES EL FONDO DE LA CONTROVERSIA?
Samuel Abad, Defensor Adjunto en Temas Constitucionales
Fuente: Politika, Tuesta & Consultores
4 de noviembre del 2005
En las últimas semanas se ha discutido intensa y acaloradamente si las resoluciones del JNE en materia electoral pueden ser revisadas. Se ha dicho que ello afectaría las elecciones del 2006. A nuestro juicio, la controversia se ha sobredimensionado; es más el tema no es reciente. En efecto, el Código Procesal Constitucional (CPC), publicado en mayo del 2004 y vigente desde el 1 de diciembre último, introdujo una disposición que permite acudir al proceso de amparo, en forma excepcional, cuando una resolución del JNE viola en forma manifiesta el debido proceso (o “tutela procesal efectiva”). El amparo jamás revisa la materia electoral, sólo evalúa si el JNE respetó o no el debido proceso. Si no lo hizo anula su resolución y dispone que dicte otra garantizando dicho derecho.
Imaginemos que el JNE acuerda vacar a un alcalde por sus constantes inasistencias a las sesiones del Consejo y lo hace sin permitirle defenderse, ¿esa resolución será irrevisable? Según el artículo 5 inciso 8) del CPC en ése caso sí procedería un amparo a fin de que el JNE dicte una nueva resolución permitiendo que el Alcalde pueda defenderse.
Suele alegarse que el artículo 142 de la Constitución dispone que “no son revisables en sede judicial las resoluciones del JNE en materia electoral”. Tal disposición no puede ser interpretada en base a un criterio literal que consolide poderes absolutos sin control constitucional. Las normas no se interpretan en forma aislada –principio de unidad de la Constitución-, hay que efectuar una interpretación que armonice lo dispuesto por el artículo 142 y el debido proceso que es esencial en una democracia y debe ser respetado por todos, incluso, por el JNE.
Así lo planteó en octubre de 1999 la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en el caso Susana Higuchi cuando recomendó al estado peruano que modifique sus normas internas para que exista un “recurso efectivo” contra las decisiones del JNE que violen derechos humanos, y así lo hizo el Tribunal Constitucional en el caso Genaro Espino, publicado en abril del año pasado. El CPC recoge estos planteamientos.
Recientemente, en junio del 2005, la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos en el caso Yatama condenó al estado nicaragüense por establecer que el amparo no procedía contra las resoluciones del Consejo Supremo Electoral. Según la Corte “independientemente de la regulación que cada Estado haga respecto del órgano supremo electoral, éste debe estar sujeto a algún control jurisdiccional que permita determinar si sus actos han sido adoptados al amparo de los derechos y garantías mínimas previstos en la Convención Americana” (párrafo 175). El debido proceso es un derecho reconocido por la Convención.
En conclusión, a la luz de la Constitución, de la Convención Americana y de la jurisprudencia del Tribunal Constitucional no es posible impedir el empleo del amparo contra las resoluciones del JNE que violen en forma manifiesta el debido proceso. En todo caso, sería conveniente que el Congreso estableciera un procedimiento urgentísimo de amparo, por ejemplo, ante la Corte Suprema o, mejor aún, ante el Tribunal Constitucional –previa reforma constitucional- que ayude a clarificar las preocupaciones por el cronograma electoral y , a su vez, garantice el debido proceso. No hay que olvidar que “el control es un elemento inseparable del concepto de Constitución” (M. Aragón) y que en una democracia todos los poderes públicos pueden ser fiscalizados, en el caso del JNE, sólo si se afecta el debido proceso.
Should absent voters pay a fine?
El jueves 3 de noviembre, el Pleno del Congreso aprobaría la reducción de las multas para los ciudadanos que dejen de emitir su voto en las próximas elecciones generales de abril del 2006. La multa se reduciría de 132 soles a 99 soles, de ser el 4% de la Unidad Impositiva Tributaria (UIT= 3,300 soles) se rebajaría al 3%. Otro tema importante a aprobarse es el de la condonación de las multas impagas de anteriores procesos electorales.
APRA’s “politica de juventudes”: Quota of 25% for candidates under 25
According to El Comercio, Alan García propone cuota de jóvenes en listas de candidatos. The new quota system, there is already a 30% quota for female candidates, would start at the municipal level to attract youth to politics.
Cronograma Electoral – ONPE
Cronograma Elecciones Generales 2006 Download file
Peruvian Congress decision: JNE prevails over TC
Poder Judicial and Tribunal Constitucional are not entitled to examine the Jurado Nacional de Elecciones rulings concerning elections, according to a Congress’ Constitution committee ruling. This ruling may undermine the supremacy of the Constitution. The next step is for Congress as a whole (Pleno) to take a final decision regarding this committee ruling.
Jurado Nacional de Elecciones versus Constitutional Tribunal
La Comision de Constitucion del Congreso discutira el 17 de octubre una propuesta que podria afectar el caracter irreversible de las resoluciones emitidas por el Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (articulo 142 de la Consitucion Politica del Peru). El Tribunal Constitucional apoya la propuesta y arguye que las resoluciones del ente elecoral son revisables si es que violan derechos fundamentales. El JNE has expresado desacuerdo con la posicion del Tribunal. Esta discusion, tan cerca a las elecciones generales del 2006, ha generado criticas en diversos medios.
Acta de la sesión Ordinaria del la Comision de Constitución y Reglamento, lunes 17 de octubre de 2005 Download file
Lima and Callao will be able to vote electronically in 2006
La modernidad llegó al país a nivel electoral. Por primera vez el voto electrónico del electorado se aplicará en Lima y Callao durante las elecciones generales del 9 de abril del 2006 y aunque esta vez solo alcanzará al 30% del electorado nacional, en los siguientes procesos se alcanzará al 100% del país. El Jurado Nacional de Elecciones ha estimado que el electorado nacional ascenderá a 16.5 millones de electores, de los cuales casi 5 millones votarán en Lima.
Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) published a Project of Reglamento de Registro Electoral de Encuestadoras
En proyecto propone que sólo podrán elaborar encuestas de intención de voto en el periodo electoral y no electoral las empresas inscritas en el Registro Electoral de Encuestadoras, las que en un plazo de tres días deberán entregar el informe completo y detallado de sus encuestas incluyendo la base de datos, la persona natural o jurídica que la contrató y su financiamiento.
Se sancionará con una multa no menor de 10 ni mayor de 100 Unidades Impositivas Tributarias (una UIT son S/. 3,300 nuevos soles) a las empresas que lo incumplan, y serán suspendidas por un plazo no menor de 15, ni mayor de 180 días. Otra sanción planteada es la denuncia penal a las empresas suspendidas o no registradas y los medios de comunicación que difundan sus encuestas.
La Gerencia de Fiscalización Electoral será la encargada de fiscalizar que los datos de las encuestas difundidas por los medios sean similares a la información emitida por la empresa encuestadora conforme a ley.