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Decision
Supreme Commission for
Elections and Referendum (SCER) Chairman’s Decree No. (31) for the year
2002 to issue The Electoral Dispute resolutions
The Chairman of the Supreme
Commission for Elections and Referendum:
After having perused law No.
(13) for the year 2001 pertaining General Elections and Referendum; and
presidential decree No. (11) for the year 2002 issuing the by-law for law
No. (13) for the year 2001 pertaining General Elections and Referendum,
the presidential decree No. (25) for the year 2001 on the formation of the
Supreme Commission for Elections and Referendum and the presentation of
the Chairman of the Legal Affairs Sector and having been approved in the
Supreme Commission for Elections and Referendum meeting minutes No. (22)
Dated March, 25th, 2002.
We Hereby Issue the Following Manual
Chapter One
Section One
Name, Definitions and
Challenges of the Voters Registration Process
Article (1): This
manual shall be called the “Electoral Dispute Resolution Manual”
Article (2): For the
purposes of this manual, the following terms and words shall have the
following meanings, unless the context dictates another meaning:
The Republic: The
Republic of Yemen.
The Law: The General
Elections and Referendum Law No. (13) for the year 2001.
The By-Law: The By-law
for the General Elections and Referendum Law
The SCER: The Supreme
Commission for Elections and Referendum (SCER)
The Electoral :
Petitions raised by any person with legal standing before the specialized
legal bodies to require the inserting or deleting of voters from the
Voters List in accordance with the Law, or to contest the Main Committees’
decisions on inserting or deleting application before the Court of First
Instance, or to contest the verdicts of the Court of First Instance before
the Court of Appeals, or to contest the Voting and Counting procedures and
results of the Parliamentary Elections before the Supreme Court. Or to
contest the Validity of Membership in the House of Representatives, or to
present the complaints and protests before the Presidiums of the house of
representatives and before the Consultative Council (Alshowra Council)
against the nomination for Presidential Elections and contest its
decisions before the Constitutional Division of the Supreme Court, or to
contest the voting and counting procedures of Presidential Elections or to
contest the procedures and results of a public referendum in the
constituencies before the Court of First Instance and the Court of
Appeals, or to contest the general result of the referendum before the
Supreme Court or to contest about violation the constitution and law by
the SCER before all the judiciary institutions.
Committees for preparation
of Voters Lists: The Main Committees and Sub-Committees formed to
prepare the lists of voters’ names and particulars, or to review and make
copies of these, and to perform all other necessary tasks in accordance
with the provisions of this law.
Supervisory Committees:
the Committees formed by the Supreme Commission at the governorate level
in order to supervise the work of other Election Committees.
The Decisions of the Main
Committees: The decisions issued by the Main Committee pertaining the
applications of inserting in and deleting form the Voters Lists.
The Court of First
Instance: It is the court that includes in its jurisdiction the
electoral constituencies and looks into the contests against the Main
Committees, decisions on the applications of inserting in or deleting from
the Voters Lists. It is also the Court that the procedures and results of
the referendum in the constituencies are being contested before.
Courts of Appeal:
Governorates Courts that look into the contests against the Court of First
Instance verdicts on the applications of inserting in or deleting from the
Voters Lists and its verdicts on the procedures and the results of the
referendum in the constituencies.
The Final Decisions of the
Main Committees: They are decisions issued by the Main Committees in
inserting and deleting applications in the Voters Lists if no body
contests before the Court of First Instance
The Final Verdicts of the
Courts of First Instance: The verdicts issued by the Court of First
Instance on the inserting and deleting of the Voters Lists applications,
if no body with legal standing appealed before the Courts of Appeals.
The Final Verdicts of the
Courts of Appeal: All the verdicts issued by the Courts of Appeals on
the electoral contest pertaining the verdicts issued by the Court of First
Instance on the Main Committees decisions on the inserting and deleting of
the Voters Lists applications and the verdicts issued on the procedures
and the results in the constituencies and the verdicts issued by the
Courts of Appeals on the voting and procedures and counting results of the
local councils elections.
The Executive Minutes:
Minutes that include what has been inserted and deleted according to
decrees and final decrees.
Section Two
Applications of Insertion and
Deletion
Article (3)
An official copy of the Voters
Lists for each electoral constituency, endorsed by the Main Committee,
shall be posted in squares and public areas within the boundaries of the
electoral constituency, in the centers of Administrative Districts and
other public areas designated by the Supreme Commission for (5) days
starting from the (6th) day following the end of reviewing, up-dating and
preparation of the Voters Lists. The publishing date of the official copy
shall be mentioned on the copy.
Article (4)
Any citizen residing in the
electoral constituency is entitled to present a request to the Main
Committee to insert his/her name in the Voters List of the electoral
constituency if the citizen residing name has been wrongfully omitted or
to delete any name that may have been wrongfully listed therein. Any
registered voter shall have the right to demand the insertion of any name
that may have been wrongfully omitted or the deletion of any name that may
have been wrongfully listed therein.
Article (5)
Applications of insertion and
deletion mentioned above shall be presented to the location of the Main
Committee within (15) days from the day following the posting of the
Voters Lists.
Article (6)
The applicant shall meet the
criteria and conditions detailed bellow:
-
Submit the application within the period
provided for in the law, and to mention the names of the people wanted
to be inserted or deleted along with their particulars, and the reasons
behind the application in accordance with the form prepared for that
purpose. The application for inserting or deleting must not include more
than 10 names.
-
Present the relevant documents along with the
application.
-
Present death certificate or an official paper
states his/her death event.
-
A copy of the applicant’s Identification Card
or Electoral Card.
-
The applicant signature on the application
form along with his finger prints.
Article (7)
The Main Committee shall
ensure that the applications of insertion and deletion fulfill the
conditions required in the previous article. Each application shall be
recorded in a special ledger marking the filing date for each application
and each voter shall be entitled to examine this ledger.
Article (8)
The Main Committee shall
issue a receipt to the applicant to prove the receiving of the application
according to the form prepared for that purpose.
Article (9)
The Main Committee shall
give the applicant a notice to notify the respondent to be present at the
Main Committee location to be confronted by the application presented
against him. The notice shall designate a meeting date and the name of the
applicant and the name of respondent. The notice shall also be recorded in
a list that shows the applicant name and information.
Article (10)
The applicant shall
notify the respondent of the application in accordance with the form
prepared for that purpose, and the applicant shall prove that the
respondent has received the notification thereof.
Article (11)
The Main Committee shall clarify that
the period of receiving the inserting and deleting applications has ended
on the portfolio of the application record. The Main Committee shall after
that, write the decisions and verdicts issued on this regard in the
portfolio of the application record at the end of each phase.
Article (12)
The Main Committee shall forward the
Supreme Council for Elections and Referendum of statistics on the
presented applications of insertion and deletion one at a time.
Article (13)
The Main Committee shall, at the end
of each phase of the electoral challenges phases concerning the
preparation of the Voters Lists, shall submit total statistics on
applications of insertion and deletion and the decisions and verdicts
issued on this regard by the Main Committees and Courts
Section Three
The Determination of the
Insertion and Deletion Applications
Article (14)
The Main Committee
shall start determining
the applications of insertion and deletion on the day following the
submission of the applications. The determination period shall not exceed
(5) days following the submission deadline.
Article (15)
If the applicant and
respondent are present, the Main Committee shall hear the statements of
the applicant and the respondent and shall undertake all investigations
and enquiries that are deem appropriate.
Article (16)
If the applicant was not
present at the meeting by the end of the day that was designated to
examine the applications, the Main Committee shall omit the application,
and if the applicant was present, the Committee shall hear his/her
statements and shall request evidence to prove the statement.
Article (17)
If the respondent was
present, and the applicant was not present, the Main Committee shall
present the application to the respondent and hear his/her statements and
write the minutes.
Article (18)
The Main committee shall
investigate and advice on the validity of the submitted applications and
shall prove what has been reached by writing minutes on the back of the
application.
Article (19)
The Main Committee shall issue
its decisions after the completion of all the legal procedures, and the
Main Committee shall explain the basis on which it relied to issue its
decision. The Committee shall also write the names of the people that were
included in the verdict in accordance with the form prepared for that
purpose.
Article (20)
The Main Committee shall not
issue its decisions
except by the decision of at least two of the committee members.
Article (21)
The Main Committee shall post
a copy of its decisions in the locations mentioned in Article (3) of this
Manual for a durations of (5) days starting after the last day of the
applications
determination period.
Article (22)
The Main Committee shall
indicate in the application record the stated decisions of the insertion
and deletion, whether sustained or rejected.
Article (23)
The Main Committee shall keep
the application record and shall classify the original copies of the
insertion and deletion applications along with the relevant documents and
the decisions made in a folder
according to the filing
date and reference number.
Article (24)
The Committee shall
indicate in the back of its decisions to the effect whether the decisions
have been contested before the Court of First Instance or not.
Section Four
Contesting the Decisions of
Insertion and Deletion before the Court of First Instance
Article (25)
Every voter may contest
the Main Committee’s decisions on the application of insertion and
deletion before the Court of First Instance which the electoral
constituency is part of its local jurisdiction.
Article (26)
The contests against the
Main Committee’s decisions may be submitted before the Court of First
Instance starting from the day the decisions are published and for (5)
days.
Article (27)
The petitioner shall
present the contest by filing an appeal before the Court of First instance
and the appeal shall contain the name of the petitioner, an original copy
of the decision of the Main Committee which the contest is presented
against, and the date of the decisions. The petitioner shall also mention
the reasons on which he relies to present his petition along with only the
petitioner signature and the relevant documents.
Article (28)
The contest shall be
limited to the cases included in the application submitted to the Main
Committee and the petitioner shall not be permitted to mention in his
contest cases that were not included in his/her application to the Main
Committee.
Article (29)
The Court of First
Instance shall keep the Main Committee up-dated with all the contests and
a final statistic of the number of the contests shall be forward to the
Main Committee at the end of the contest submission period to the Court.
Section Five
The Determination of the
Contests by the Court of First instance
Article (30)
The Court shall
undertake all investigations and enquiries that are deemed appropriate to
decide whether to uphold or dismiss the contest, deciding on a
case-by-case basis, and may order inserting, deleting or no change to the
situation.
Article (31)
The Court shall
determine the challenges from the day following the beginning of the
challenges submission period. The challenges determination period shall
not exceed (15) days following the end of the contest submission period to
the Court.
Article (32)
The Court shall, when
issuing the verdicts, clarify the decisions being contested and the names
of people whom against the contests were filed, along with their
particulars.
Article (33)
A copy of the Court’s
verdict shall be forwarded to the Main Committee and to the concerned
petitioner as soon as the verdicts are announced. The Main Committee shall
also post the verdicts in the designated areas specified in Article (13)
of this Law for (5) consecutive days following the end of the challenges
determination period designated by the Court of First Instance.
Section Six
Contesting the Court First
Instance Verdicts before the Courts of Appeal
Article (34)
Any voter in the
constituency shall be entitled to contest the verdicts of the Court of
First Instance on the Main Committee’s decisions pertaining the insertion
and deletion applications before a Court of Appeal within (10) days
following the end of the challenges determination period.
Article (35)
The petitioner shall
present the contest by filing an appeal before a judge assigned by the
Chairman of the Court of Appeal in any Governorate. If the need arises in
any electoral constituency, several judges may be assigned and the work
shall be distributed among them.
Article (36)
The petition shall
contain the name of the petitioner, the details of the contested verdict
and the reasons on which the contester relies to present the petition. The
petition shall also contain the contestant’s signature along with the
relevant documents.
Article (37)
The contest shall be
limited to the cases mentioned in the petition before the Court of First
Instance, and the petitioner shall not include any other situations.
Article (38)
The Court of Appeal
shall start the determination of the petitions from the day following the
beginning of the period for filing appeals and shall not exceed (20) days
from the end of the filing period.
Article (39)
The appellant verdict
shall include along with the reasons of the verdict, the petitioner’s
name, the Court of First Instance verdict details, the respondents’ names
and their complete particulars.
Article (40)
The verdicts of the
Courts of Appeal shall be final and the Court shall attach the executive
formula to the verdict.
Article (41)
The Court of Appeal
shall forward a copy of the Court’s verdict to the petioner(s) concerned
and to the Supervisory Committee in the Governorate concerned as soon as
the verdict is announced. The Supervisory Committee shall furnish the Main
Committee in the constituency concerned with these verdicts no later than
(24) hours following their receipt of the Court’s verdict.
Section Seven
Amending and Changing the
Voters List in Accordance with the Final Verdicts and Decrees
Article (42)
a) The Main Committee
shall on a one by one basis amend and change the Voters Lists in
accordance with the final verdicts and decrees as announced and it is not
permissible to change the Voters Lists after the call for elections. In
such instances, the Lists shall be deemed final.
b) Final Voters Lists
are indisputable at the time of voting and no person shall be allowed to
participate in any election or referendum unless that person’s name is
listed therein.
c) In cases of early
elections or referenda, the final Voters Lists used in the most recent
elections with the addition to those who are registered prior to the call
for elections, shall be used for conducting that elections or referendums.
Article (43)
The Main Committee shall
prepare the final minutes of the final decrees issued by the Committee,
the final verdicts issued by the Court of First Instance that were not
contested and the final verdicts of the Court of Appeal. The Committee
must clarify in the final minutes the names of the inserted or deleted
voters along with their complete particulars in accordance with the form
prepared for that purpose.
Article (44)
The Main Committee shall
keep and organize the decrees issued by the Committee, the verdicts issued
by the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal in the file of the
insertion and deletion applications along with the final minutes to be
submitted to the Supreme Commission of Elections and Referendum.
Article (45)
The Main Committee shall
comply with the mentioned above procedures and shall be held accountable
for any neglect (misconduct).
Chapter Two
Contesting the Counting and
Voting Results
Section One
Contesting the Counting and
Voting Results of the Parliamentary Elections
Article (46)
Any person with legal standing
has the rights to contest voting and counting results of the Parliamentary
Elections by filing a petition before the Supreme Court in accordance with
the following conditions:
a) The contest shall be
submitted within (72) hours following the announcement of the final
results of the counting in the consistency.
b) Each contest shall be for a
cause and limited to the voting and counting procedures.
c) Each contest shall be
accompanied by the total sum of (YR50, 000) to be deposited with the
Court’s Treasury, and shall be credited to the State Treasury if the
contest is overturned or to be refunded if the contest is sustained.
Article (47)
The Supreme Court Shall form
an Assisting Body that consists of Chairmen of Courts of Appeal or their
representatives to investigate and advice on the validity of the contests
filed regarding the final results of the presidential elections.
Article (48)
The Supreme Court shall issue
a summons with a copy of the petition to wining candidate against whom the
contest regarding the voting and counting procedures was filed, and the
candidate shall submit his defense within (4) days following the date of a
valid summons concerning the contest.
Article (49)
The Supreme Court shall issue
its verdict according to the Assisting Body advice within the maximum of
(10) days from the date the Assisting Body presented its advice, under the
condition that issuing a verdict on the contests must not exceed the
period precedes the elected council session. The Supreme Court’s verdicts
in this regard are final, and the Supreme Court should inform the Supreme
Commission of its final verdicts.
Article (50)
The submission of the contests
shall not prevent the Supreme Commission announcement of the names of
winning candidates in the Parliamentary Elections whom against contests
have been filed regarding voting and counting procedures in their
constituencies, and shall not prevent awarding them with a certificate of
the Parliament membership and attending the Council’s sessions.
Article (51)
After the submission period is
over, the Courts of Appeal shall provide the Supreme Commission with
complete statistics of the filed contests and the procedures that have
been made
Article (52)
The Supreme Court has the
right to create records for the submitted contests regarding the
Parliamentary Elections to be easier to refer back to.
Section Two
Contesting the Validity of
the Parliament Membership
Article (53)
Each voter or candidate may
submit to the House of Representatives a challenge stating the legal
causes for the invalidity of the wining candidate’s membership. Each
challege shall be accompanied by the total sum of (YR50, 000), which shall
be credited to the State Treasury if the contest is overturned or refunded
if the contest is sustained.
Article (54)
a) The Presidium of the House
of Representatives is responsible for forwarding to the Supreme Court the
challenges along with the relevant documents within (15) days from the
date such challenges were submitted to the House of Representatives. The
Supreme Court shall investigate and advice on the validity of the
challenges and shall submit to the House of Representatives the results of
the investigation within (90) days from the date such contests were
submitted to it.
b) The results of the
investigation shall be presented to the House of Representatives within
(60) days from the date of receiving them from the Court. Membership of
the House of Representatives shall not be nullified except by the decision
of a two-thirds majority of the members of the House of Representatives.
Section Three
Contesting the Presidential
Elections
First Part
Objections and Complaints before
Presidiums of the House of Representatives and before the Consultative
Council
rticle
(55)
Every voter shall have the
right to contest before the Presidiums of the House Representatives and
before the Consultative Council any candidate who nominated himself in
violation of the conditions stipulated in Article (107) of the
constitution which are:
-
Not to be less than (40) years old.
-
Must be from Yemeni parents.
-
Must be able to practice his political and
civic rights.
-
Must be of good character and conduct,
observant of religious duties and responsibilities, and must not have
been finally convicted by a court of any crime of honor or good conduct
unless pardoned or exonerated.
-
Must not be married to a non-Yemeni lady or
marry one during his appointment.
Article (56)
Any petitioner before the
House Representatives and before the Consultative Council must fulfill the
following requirements:
1.
The petitioner must submit the contest within the (3) days
following the announcement of the candidates names.
2.
The petition must be for a cause and limited to the
violations of the conditions listed above.
3.
Present the relevant documents.
4.
A copy of his Identification and electoral Card.
5.
The petitioner signature on the petition paper along with
his finger prints.
Article (57)
Each rejected (dismissed)
electoral applicant shall compliant before the House Representatives and
before the Consultative Council within the (3) days that follow the
announcement of the candidates names and he shall present the legal
reasons of his complaints.
Article (58)
The Presidiums of the House of
Representatives and the Consultative Council shall determine the submitted
contests and complaints and announce its decisions thereof (1) day
following the complaints submission deadline.
Article (59)
Every applicant shall have the
right to contest before the Supreme Court Divisions for Constitutional
Affairs the decisions of Presidiums of the House Representatives and the
Consultative Council regarding the contests and complaints according to
the following conditions:
-
To submit the petition within (24) hours after
the decision announcement of the Presidiums of the House Representatives
and the Consultative Council on the complaints on the complaints.
-
The contest shall be for a cause and limited
to the decisions on the complaints.
Article (60)
The Supreme Court Divisions for Constitutional Affairs shall investigate
and advice on the validity of the contests regarding the decisions on the
contests and complaints.
The Supreme Court
Division for Constitutional Affairs shall come to a decision within (5)
days following the announcement of the Presidiums’ decisions and shall
inform the Presidium about its decisions immediately as issued.
Second Part
Contesting the Voting and
Counting Procedures in the Presidential Election
Article (61)
Any person with legal standing
has the right to contest voting and counting results by filing a petition
before the Supreme in accordance with the following conditions:
a)
The contest shall be submitted within (72) hours following
the announcement of the final results of the Presidential Elections by the
Supreme Commission.
b)
Each contest shall be for a cause and limited to voting
and counting procedures.
c)
Each contest shall be accompanied by the total sum of
(YR100, 000) to be deposited with the Court’s Treasury, and shall be
credited to the State Treasury if the contest is overturned or to be
refunded if the contest is sustained.
Article (62)
The Supreme Court shall form
an Assisting Body consists of Chairmen of Courts of Appeal or their
representatives to investigate and advice on the validity of the submitted
contests regarding the final results of the Presidential Elections.
Article (63)
The Court of Appeal
shall issue a summons with a copy of the petition to the wining candidate
against whom the contest was filed regarding voting and counting
procedures in his constituency. The candidate shall submit his defense
within (4) days following the date of a valid summons concerning the
contest. The Court of Appeal’s verdict(s) shall be deemed final.
Article (64)
The Supreme Court shall
issue its verdict according to the Assisting Body advice within maximum of
(10) days from the date the Assisting Body presented its advice, under the
condition that issuing a verdict on the contests must not exceeds the
period precedes taking the winner his constitutional Oath before the House
of Representatives and assuming his duties. The Supreme Court’s verdicts
in this regard are final, and the Supreme Court should inform the Supreme
Commission of its verdicts.
Article (65)
The submission of contests
shall not prevent the Supreme Commission awarding the wining presidential
candidate with a certificate thereof, or prevent the President-elect from
taking the constitutional Oath before the House of Representatives
and assuming his duties.
Section Four
Contesting the Voting and
Counting Results of Local Council Elections
Article (66)
Any person with legal standing
within the Local Electoral Constituency has the rights to contest voting
and counting results by filing a petition before the Court of Appeals in
the governorate in accordance with the following conditions:
a)
The contest shall be submitted within (48) hours following
the announcement of election results in the constituency.
b)
Each contest shall be for a cause and limited to voting
and counting procedures.
c)
Each contest shall be accompanied by the total sum of (YR
10,000) to be deposited with the Court’s Treasury, and shall be credited
to the Local Council in the administrative district if the contest is
overturned or to be refunded if the contest is sustained.
Article (67)
The Court of Appeal in the
governorate shall form an assisting body from chairmen of Courts of First
Instance in the capital City of the governorate and the administrative
districts, from which the contests were received, or their
representatives, to investigate and advice on the validity of the contest
filed regarding voting and counting procedures.
Article (68)
The Court of Appeal shall
issue a summons with a copy of the petition to the wining candidate
against whom the contest was filed. The candidate shall submit his defense
within (4) days following the date of a valid summons concerning the
contest. The Court of Appeal’s verdict(s) shall be deemed final.
Article (69)
The Assisting Body shall
investigate and advice on the validity of the submitted contests
regarding voting and counting procedures and shall undertake all
the procedures that deemed appropriate.
Article (70)
The Assisting Body shall
present its advice on the validity of the contests filed regarding voting
and counting procedures to the Court of Appeal within maximum of (5) days
following the end of the submitting date. The Court of Appeal shall issue
its verdict according to the Assisting Body advice within maximum of (10)
days from the date the Assisting Body presented its advice. The Court of
Appeal verdicts in this regard are final.
Article (71)
The Court of Appeal shall
provide the concerned respondent and the Chairman of the Supreme Council
for Elections and Referendum with an original copy of the Court’s verdicts
as of the time of issuance.
Article (72)
The submission of the contests
shall not prevent the announcement of the names of winning candidates in
the Local Council Elections whom contests have been filed against
regarding voting and counting procedures in their constituencies.
Article (73)
If the Court of Appeal
upholds a contest which leads to the voting and counting processes being
deemed invalid, the Supreme Commission shall be responsible for
undertaking the necessary procedures to repeat the elections within a
maximum of (60) days following the announcement of the Court’s verdict(s).
Article (74)
The Courts of Appeal must
provide the Supreme Commission with complete statistic of the
submitted contests at the end of the contest deadline and the statistic
shall be accompanied by the verdicts issued on this regard along with the
executive procedure??? so SCER could act accordingly.
Section Five
Contesting the Procedures
and Results of the Referendum in the Electoral Constituencies
Part One
Contesting before the
Courts of First Instance
Article
(75)
Any person with legal standing
has the rights to contest the procedures and results of the Referendum by
filing a petition before the Court of First Instance
which the electoral constituency is part of its local jurisdiction
in accordance with the following conditions:
1- The contest shall be
submitted within (48) hours following the Main Committee announcement of
the final results of the referendum.
2- The contest shall be for
good causes and limited to the referendum results.
3- The contest shall be
accompanied with the relevant documents that indicate the validity of the
contest.
Article (76)
The Court of First
Instance shall investigate the validity of the contests and shall
undertake all investigations and enquiries that are deemed appropriate to
come to a decision on the contest. The Court shall issue its verdict (s)
starting from the day following the beginning of the contest submission.
The contest determination period shall not exceed (5) days following the
end of the contest submission period.
Article (77)
The Court of First
instance shall forward an original copy of the Court’s verdict to the
petitioner and to the Main Committee in the Constituency as announced. The
Court of First Instance verdicts may be contested before the Courts of
Appeal and the Court of appeal verdicts shall be deemed final.
Part Two
Contesting before the
Courts of Appeals
Article (78)
Any person with legal standing
has the rights to contest the Court of First Instance verdicts on the
procedures and results of the Referendum in the constituency by filing a
petition before the Court of Appeals in accordance with the following
conditions:
a)
The contest shall be submitted within (72) hours following
the issuance of the Court of First instance verdict on the procedures and
results of the Referendum in the constituency.
b)
The contest shall be for a cause and limited to the Court
of First Instance verdicts on the referendum results in the constituency.
c)
The contest shall be accompanied with the
relevant documents that indicate the validity of the contest.
Article (79)
The Court of Appeal shall
investigate the validity of the contests against the procedures and
results of the Referendum in the constituency and shall undertake
all investigations and enquiries that are deemed appropriate to issue a
verdict on the contests starting from the day following the beginning of
the contest submission period. The contest determination period shall not
exceed (10) days following the end of the contest submission
period.
rticle (80)
The Court of Appeal
shall forward an original copy of the Court’s verdicts on the contests to
the Supervisory Committee in the Governorate concerned as announced. The
Court’s verdicts shall be deemed final and the submission of the contests
against the procedures and results of the Referendum in the
constituency shall not prevent the announcement of the general result.
Article (81)
Any person with legal standing
has the rights to contest general result of the Referendum by filing a
petition before the Supreme Court in accordance with the following
conditions:
d)
The contest shall be submitted within (72) hours
following the announcement of the general result of the Referendum by
the Supreme Court.
e)
The contest shall be for a cause and limited to the
general referendum result.
f)
The contest shall be accompanied with the
relevant documents that indicate the validity of the contest.
Article (82)
The Supreme Court shall
investigate the validity of the contests against the referendum general
result and shall undertake all investigations and enquiries that are
deemed appropriate to come to a decision on the contest. The Court shall
issue its verdict starting from the day following the beginning of the
contest submission. The challenges determination period shall not exceed
(10) days following the end of the challenges submission period.
Article (83)
The Supreme Court shall
inform the Chairman of the Supreme Commission of the Court’s verdicts on
the contests. The Court verdicts shall be deemed final.
rticle
(84)
Contesting the general
result of the referendum shall not prevent the announcement of the
referendum result.
Article (85)
a)
Each voter may file a contest petition before the Judiciary against the
Supreme Commission for Elections and Referendum for any procedures
undertaken by it in violation of the Constitution and the law. Various
levels of courts shall decide upon such contests within (30) days.
Deliberations on such cases at each court level may not exceed (10) days.
b)
The petitioner shall
clarify in the petition the aspects of violation the constitution or the
law and the contest shall be accompanied with the relevant
documents that indicate the validity of the contest.
Chapter Three
Penalties
Article (86)
Subject to stricter
penalties provided for in other laws, the following offences committed by
Chairmen and members of committees formed by the Supreme Commission at any
stage of the electoral process shall be punishable by a maximum term of
(1) year imprisonment or by a minimum fine of (YR 150,000):
First:
Tampering with the Voters Lists or voters’ information, or wrongfully
entering or deleting a person’s name, or omitting a voter’s name during
voting;
Second:
Tampering with election results or delaying their announcement, or
refusing to sign such results;
Third:
Concealing ballot papers, or omitting them during counting of votes;
Fourth:
Carrying out any instructions contradicting with this Law, its by-laws or
the decisions of the Supreme Commission;
Fifth:
Refusing to consider a legal application for a candidate or any person
with legal standing in violation of the provisions of this law and the
decisions of the Supreme Commission;
Sixth:
Failing to comply with the timeframe for the electoral phases or violating
it at any times;
Seventh:
Deliberately failing to deliver on schedule election results,
documentation and supplies to the General Secretariat or any of its
branches;
Eighth:
Opening ballot paper envelopes before the scheduled time or disclosing
information about ballot papers to any political party, organization, body
or candidate;
Ninth:
Disclosing any confidential information or data or any document that may
adversely affect others.
Article (87)
Subject to stricter
penalties provided for in other laws, any election offences or crimes
committed by employees of executive authorities or security committees
shall be punishable by a maximum term of (1) year imprisonment and removal
from office.
Article (88)
Subject to stricter
penalties provided for in other laws, any political party or organization
whose members cause a disruption to the electoral process resulting in the
postponement or cancellation of elections shall be subject to punishment
as follows:
First: Bear the cost of
a supplementary election to be held at the electoral center or
constituency where the general election was either postponed or cancelled;
Second: Be barred from
participation in the supplementary election;
Thirdly: Public
announcement of the verdict against the offending party through official
audio, visual and printed media sources and through the official newspaper
of the party concerned.
Article (89)
Execution of any
penalties shall not deter the aggrieved from resorting to the Court to
claim compensation for damages.
Article (90)
Subject to stricter
penalties provided for in the Penal Code, a maximum term of (6) months’
imprisonment shall apply to anyone who:
First:
Has violated the provisions of Part Four of this Law;
Second:
Has voted with full knowledge that his name had been wrongfully registered
in the voters list or has impersonated another during voting;
Third:
Has disclosed the opinion of another voter against his wish;
Fourth:
Has voted more than once in any single election;
Fifth:
Has made an unauthorized entry into premises designated for voting and
refused to leave when ordered by the Committee;
Sixth:
Has taken part in demonstrations on Election Day;
Seventh:
Has taken part in a rally with the intent of causing chaos and rioting on
Election Day;
Eighth:
Has stolen, concealed, destroyed or tampered with any document pertaining
to the elections;
Ninth:
Has changed the choices of an illiterate voter or alike by writing in a
name or marking a symbol not intended by the voter, or obstructed a voter
from exercising his voting rights;
Tenth:
As a Chairman or Committee member, has deliberately neglected or failed to
perform his duties as stipulated by this Law after being reprimanded in
writing by his supervisor or by a voter.
Article (91)
Subject to stricter
penalties, any of the following shall be punishable by a maximum (1) year
imprisonment:
First:
Any person who uses force or threatens to use force to prevent a voter
from exercising his voting rights or forcing him to vote in a certain way
or to abstain from voting;
Second:
Any person who grants, offers or pledges to grant a voter or others
certain benefits to force him to vote in a certain way or to abstain from
voting;
Third:
Any person who distributes or spreads inaccurate information about the
conduct or character of a candidate among voters with the intention of
influencing the opinions of voters and the election results;
Fourth:
Any person who enters electoral premises carrying a firearm in violation
of the provisions of Article (97) of this Law;
Fifth:
Any person who defames, slanders, or threatens any election committee or
any of its members while on duty or because of such duties;
Sixth:
Any person who uses aggravated force against committee members or the
ballot boxes with the intention of taking possession of the ballot boxes,
or of tampering with them, or of obstructing election results;
Seventh:
Any person who abuses his power and authority to alter the opinion of any
voter. Such a person shall also be removed from office;
Eighth:
Any person who violates the general provisions of Article (143) of this
Law.
Article (92)
Subject to stricter
penalties, a minimum term of (18) months’ imprisonment or a minimum fine
of (YR 200,000) shall apply to any person who:
a) Concealed, destroyed
or tampered with the Voters List or changed it in any manner.
b) Used force or threats
to disrupt the freedom of voting or its order.
Article (93)
Any person who
registered his name in the Voters List in more than one voting domicile in
clear violation of the provisions of Article (4)(b) of this Law shall be
punishable by (3) months imprisonment, have his name removed from all
Lists, and be barred from registration and nomination for a parliamentary
or local electoral cycle.
Article (94)
Attempting election
crimes mentioned above shall be punishable by a maximum of half of the
penalty stipulated for a committed crime.
Article (95)
If a crime is committed
or attempted in electoral premises, the Chairman of the Election Committee
shall immediately prepare minutes documenting the event and shall order
the arrest of the suspect and hand him over to the police and then to the
Office of the Public Prosecutor to undertake legal procedures.
Chapter Four
General Provisions
Article (96)
The Legal Affair Sector shall
undertake the representation of the Supreme Commission of Elections and
Referendum before the various levels of Courts.
Article (97)
All applications,
petitions, and contests filed in accordance with this Law shall be exempt
from all State and judicial taxes and fees.
Article (98)
Only the Judiciary has
the jurisdiction to issue the penalty verdicts on the violations of the
elections law, its executive by-laws, this Manual, and the Supreme
Commission for Elections and referendum decisions.
Article (99)
Except as provided for
in this Law, the general provisions stipulated in Procedural Law, Civil
Law and Evidence Law shall apply
Article (100)
The Supreme
Commission of Elections and Referendum shall undertake the procedures
and the enquiries that
are deemed to amend this Manual in accordance with the elections
nature.
Article (101)
Any provisions in this
Manual shall be deemed null and void if contradicts provisions of General
Elections and Referendum Law No. (13) 2001.
Article (102)
This Law shall come into
effect as of the date of its publication and shall be executed by the .
Signed at the
Supreme Commission for Elections and Referendum
May, 20, 2002 AD
Khaled .A. Al-Shareef
Chairman of the Supreme
Commission for Elections and Referendum
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