Ahead of Colombia’s upcoming congressional and presidential elections in March and May, respectively, Colombia Reports will be featuring editorials from the Electoral Observation Mission (MOE), a local NGO monitoring election-related issues such as voter fraud and suppression.
The regular editorials will come from different members associated with the group and cover a range of topics, offering independent and up-to-date statistics, reports and analyses of the congressional and presidential elections held in March and May respectively.
“The MOE has become a highly reputable organization when it comes to elections in this country,” said Colombia Reports Editor-In-Chief Adriaan Alsema, adding that the non-governmental electoral watchdog “has become key in expanding citizen participation in Colombia’s elections.”
MOE’s commitment to nonpartisan observation, he said, was an important factor in determining the partnership.
“Independent electoral oversight serves a vital function in a healthy democracy,” said Alsema. “In that sense, we at Colombia Reports should provide space to organizations like MOE as part of our goal of providing thorough and accurate information, both to people on the ground here in Colombia and to the larger global community.”
Alsema stressed that the editorials will run in conjunction with but separate from the rest of Colombia Report’s broader election coverage.
Published Wednesday, the first in this new series of editorials — which covers the broad implications of national elections on the ongoing Colombian peace process — can be found under the “Perspective” section on the Colombia Reports homepage, where all future articles will also be hosted.
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MOE expects to have new content available on a weekly basis throughout the buildup to this spring’s elections.