UN, Canadian Diplomats urge Carter Center return to observe recount

United Nations resident representative in Guyana, Mikiko Tanaka on Sunday expressed hope that the Carter Center Electoral Observer Mission can return to Guyana to observe the national recount of all votes cast on March 2.

In a post on Twitter, Tanaka said the Center, which has observed elections in Guyana for several decades, will help to bring credible closure to the two-month-long electoral process.

“The @UN hopes for the timely return of the Carter Center @CarterGuyanaEOM to #Guyana to fully participate in the observation of the national recount and to help bring speedy and credible closure to the 2 March #GuyanaElections,” she noted.

Similar sentiments were expressed by Canadian High Commissioner to Guyana Lilian Chatterjee.

She noted that Canada funded the Carter Center Election Observer Team in Guyana.

“…I hope Guyana will allow them to return to complete their task. @CarterCenter has earned the respect of Guyanese citizens & political parties for decades,” the diplomat said.

The Carter Center withdrew its team from Guyana on March 20 due to the legal challenges to the recount, increasing restrictions on international travel because of COVID-19, and the decline in the security environment in Guyana, but noted that they are willing to return when the electoral process resumes.

On Saturday, the Center said it has so far been unable to get approval to fly to Guyana to observe the national recount of votes cast on March 02.

“The Carter Center is trying to get an observer on a Monday flight to Georgetown to observe the recount but has so far been unsuccessful in getting approval from the Government of Guyana,” the Carter Center Electoral Observer Mission tweeted.

In a recent interview with the News Room, the US Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch had indicated the Carter Center was one of two U.S. organisations ready and willing to return to Guyana to observe the recount.’

On Saturday, Public Relations Officer of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Yolanda Ward said the only foreign Electoral Observer mission which the Commission has heard from is the Organisation of American States (OAS). She said that body has indicated that it will be using two of its local team members to observe the recount.