Iraq: Annan welcomes establishment of team to examine election complaints

un.news: Emphasizing that Iraqis who have complaints about their recent elections should get a hearing, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today welcomed the decision by the International Mission for Iraqi Elections (IMIE) to establish a team of experts to examine the issue.

The team, which will include two representatives from the League of Arab States, is set to assess developments since 15 December, when parliamentary elections were held and its interim report was issued.

In welcoming the IMIE move, the Secretary-General also voiced strong support for ongoing efforts by the Independent Electoral Commission of Iraq (IECI) to investigate and audit all complaints received before certifying the results of those elections.

In a statement released by his spokesman, Mr. Annan said the UN has encouraged the IECI to invite additional international observers to support this process. "It is critical that those Iraqi groups who have complained about the conduct of the election are given a hearing," he said. "This team of assessors, which was not involved in the conduct of the elections, offers an independent evaluation of these complaints." Read more