IPU COUNCIL PRESIDENT CONGRATULATES BRAZILIANS ON EXAMPLE OF DEMOCRACY IN RECENT ELECTIONS
The President of the Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Chilean Senator Sergio Páez, dubbed the presidential elections held last Sunday in Brazil "a great success for democracy on the Latin American continent". He commended "the civic spirit, the orderly atmosphere and the high turnout" which characterized the elections.
Mr. Páez said that "the participation of the Brazilians in the poll was exemplary, not only because the proportion of voters abstaining fell to 18% from a historic high of 40% (thus defying the worldwide pattern of declining interest in politics and decision-making) but also because they went to the polls in an easygoing, festive mood, which turned these elections into a sort of party for democracy".
The IPU Council President also congratulated the Brazilians on their technological mastery of the electronic voting system: "it isn't easy to use a high-tech method effectively, especially when the aim is to guarantee a transparent electoral process for more than 100 million voters".
The elections in Brazil are a success for Latin American democracy and for the future of the representative mandate, stressed Mr. Páez. "The Brazilians have proven their democratic maturity in an orderly election that sets a fine example, not only for Latin America but the rest of the world as well", he concluded.
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Established in 1889 and with its Headquarters in Geneva, the IPU, the oldest multilateral organisation, currently has 144 affiliated national parliaments and five regional assemblies as associate members. The organisation of the world's parliaments also has a Liaison Office with the United Nations in New York.
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