'Pod lupom': 80,000 citizens want new technologies in elections in BiH

(Patria) - The Coalition for Free and Fair Elections "Pod lupom" sent an open letter to the public ahead of a new series of talks on amendments to the Election Law of BiH.

"In the first 15 days of the "Pod lupom" Coalition's campaign to sign a citizens' petition, 80,000 citizens of BiH clearly told politicians that they want to prevent election theft and fraud on election day by introducing electronic voter identification and ballot scanning devices.

The "Pod lupom" Coalition once again draws attention to the importance of introducing new technical solutions in the elections in BiH, which would directly contribute to preventing election theft and fraud on election day. The "Pod lupom" Coalition calls on elected representatives in the BiH Parliamentary Assembly to adopt the aforementioned improvements. In addition to implementing binding verdicts of domestic and foreign courts, the BiH Parliamentary Assembly must also adopt other improvements that will represent a concrete step towards free and fair elections in BiH. Ignoring such demands from 80,000 citizens would be a wrong move and a mockery of citizens' direct participation in democratic processes, which is one of their fundamental human and civil rights.

The introduction of new technologies would restore the credibility and integrity of the electoral process, as well as citizens' trust in elections. New technologies in elections would contribute to increasing the transparency of the electoral process and higher voter turnout. Specifically, the introduction of ballot scanning devices would not change the current voting method that voters are accustomed to, but it would prevent election fraud and falsification of election results, which has been a regular occurrence so far. Electronic voter identification would prevent abuses related to the identity of voters who come to vote, and it would be possible to monitor voter turnout in real-time. Depending on the technology used, election results could be available a few hours or minutes after the polling stations close.

The "Pod lupom" Coalition's campaign for improving the electoral process involves the active participation of BiH citizens in demanding improvements to the electoral process from the authorities. BiH citizens had the opportunity to sign the petition at stands in over 70 municipalities and cities in BiH, as well as online, in the period from December 15-30, 2021.