NEXT PAGE:1/8

The Association of Asian Election Authorities (AAEA) was conceived to promote and institutionalize open and transparent elections, independent and impartial election authorities, professionalization of Asian election authorities, citizen participation in the electoral and civic process, information sharing, and the development of resources for election-related information and research. These objectives can be achieved through an exchange of experiences and information relating to election law and procedure, technology, administrative practice, and voter/civic education programs among Asian election administrators and civic leaders.

This important process began with the January 1997 Symposium in Manila. Over 150 participants, including election administrators and NGO representatives from more than 25 countries, gathered to discuss a wide range of issues including the formation of a permanent regional association of election authorities. At the conclusion of the Symposium, attendees unanimously voted to establish a Working Advisory Group to meet within 90 days and consider the issues involved in the development of an association of election authorities in the region.

The Working Advisory Group, consisting of election officials from give Asian countries, met in Manila at the end of April to follow up on the mandate decreed by the Symposium’s participants. During two days of candid discussions, the Working Advisory Group created a draft charter for the proposed association developed a preliminary funding strategy, discussed programmatic activities for association members, and set forth initial plans to hold the 1998 Conference for the Founding of the Association of Asian Election Authorities in the Philippines in February, 1998. This initiative parallels the emergence of similar association in the Caribbean, Central and Eastern Europe, and Sub-Saharan Africa.