Postal ballots put authenticity of entire electoral process at risk

We denounce the postal voting for military and police personnel, as practiced now, as neither secretive nor transparent. No substantial changes have been put in place by the Election Commission despite BERSIH 's relentless campaign for reform in last two years.
Observation of the issuance of postal ballots on Saturday, 1st March 2008 in P118 Setiawangsa by opposition candidate Ibrahim Yaacob's agents revealed three serious flaws: breach of anonymity and secrecy, open opportunities for proxy voting, and multiple registration. This is why BERSIH's demands that postal voting for security personnel and their spouses must be abolished.

Postal votes make up a significant proportion of each constituency. In Setiawangsa alone, they form 26% of the electorate. If the integrity of these postal votes cannot be guaranteed, the probity of the composition of Parliament and State Assemblies is immediately compromised, and the entire electoral process becomes a sham. This is a grave violation of the human rights of voters of Setiawangsa and elsewhere in Malaysia to choose their leaders through a clean, free, fair and transparent electoral process.

BERSIH urges the public - at home and abroad - to support its signature campaign to push for a Royal Commission on Electoral Reform after elections with the power to both review the electoral process and to investigate claims of misconducts and irregularities. For now, we demand the Election Commission to immediately provide for full observation of the whole postal voting process in the military barracks and police station to minimize fraud. We will also lodge a formal protest with the Election Commission over these matters.

Below are the flaws in the process.

1. Anonymity and secrecy is not guaranteed at all. The "Postal Voters' Kit" issued to postal voters includes Form 2 "Identity Declaration Form" which contains both the name of the military or police personnel (who is voting) and the serial number of the ballot paper. As Form 2 will be put in the envelopes together with the ballot papers to be returned for counting, it is a real concern on the part of the military and police voters that their choices will be known and that they may face retribution if they vote opposition.

2. Proxy voting is unpreventable at all. The military and police personnel voting by post do not need to mark their ballot papers at the polling station; they are allowed to mark their ballot anywhere and then return their already marked ballot to the polling station, in army base (Markas) or police station. All this will happen in the absence of the party agents, creating an unacceptably large possibility for third parties to mark these ballot papers on behalf of the voters concerned, seal them, and distribute them to military personnel to cast. In fact, allegations of proxy voting ordered by senior military or police officers has always marred the authenticity of the electoral process in Malaysia, reducing her to the likes of authoritarian countries in Central Asia and Transcaucasia.

3. Multiple registration. In our observation of the preparation of the "Postal Voters' Kit" for Setiawangsa alone, six voters have been issued with two ballot papers. The names involved are listed out below.

Signed,

Ibrahim Yaacob (KeADILan Candidate, P 118 Setiawangsa)
Sivarasa Rasiah (BERSIH Steering Committee, KeADILan Vice President)
Tian Chua (KeADILan Information Chief)
Faisal Mustapha (BERSIH Secretariat)
On behalf of BERSIH

Names who appeared twice.

Kod : 188/00/12/600


No Siri : 11856
Nama : Nesam Banu Bt Mohamad Fahmi
No Kad : T375594


No Siri : 3896
Nama : Husaini b Mohd Said
No Kad : T0534732


No Siri : 3897
Nama : I'sak b Ali bawah
No Kad : T0534736


No Siri : 2700
Nama : Aishah bte Che Mat
No Kad : 761007-06-5728


Kod : 118/00/12/431


No Siri : 3906
Nama : Zulkhairi b Zainun
No Kad : T533580
93 Rejimen Semboyan, WP.


No Siri : 3954
Nama : Mohd Kamal b Keliwon
No Kad : T534766
93 Rejimen Semboyan, WP.