Remarks by Deputy U.S. Permanent Representative
Alexis F. Ludwig
November 20, 2019
Madam Chair and OAS Ambassadors, the United States is very proud of the role of the OAS in promoting and protecting democracy and free and fair elections throughout the Hemisphere. We strongly believe, as stated in the OAS Charter, that democracy is the foundation of peace and stability in the region.
We are well aware that the OAS has been very busy working on regional democratic issues, but we feel that it is important to raise concerns that we have heard about the upcoming elections in Dominica to the Permanent Council.
Dominica has been a democracy for many years, and the OAS has sent electoral observation missions to these elections. The OAS Missions have issued a number of recommendations, few of which have been implemented. Indeed, at the invitation of the Government of Dominica, just this last August there was a joint special mission by CARICOM, the Commonwealth, and the OAS to Dominica.
The August joint report identified three main areas of concern the government needs to address to ensure that elections are fair, free, and transparent: 1) Removal of deceased persons and ineligible voters from the current electoral list; 2) Issuance of photo identification cards to electors to facilitate more accurate identification at the polls; and 3) Removal from the current electoral list of all diaspora voters who are ineligible to vote by virtue of being out of the country for more than five years. Sadly, the Government of Dominica rejected all of these recommendations.