Presidential And Parliamentary Elections In The Democratic Republic Of Congo

Andrew George has seconded EDM2310. Motion reads: “That this House recognises the critical importance of the presidential and parliamentary elections due to take place in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on28 November 2011; calls on the UK Government and international community to act to help ensure the elections are free and fair; notes the commitment of successive UK Government administrations to supporting the democratic electoral process in the DRC and to working to eradicate levels of violence, particularly against women; further notes that there will be 62,000 polling stations for a population of over 71 million in a country the size of Western Europe and therefore calls on the international community, including the UK, USA and EU to send adequate numbers of impartial international election observers; further calls on all stakeholders to do more to deliver adequate impartial domestic and regional election observers; further recognises the importance of the elections in securing democracy in the DRC and the importance to regional stability that these elections are transparent and secure; and further calls on all political parties to respect the rule of law and conduct their campaign in a non-violent manner.”