The European Union (EU) will send 106 observers to Guatemala to monitor the Sept. 9 presidential and parliamentary elections, the European Commission announced Monday.
The mission will be led by European Parliament member Wolfgang Kreissl-Dorfler and will consist of an 8-member core team, 48 long-term observers and 50 short-term observers.
The core team will arrive in Guatemala at the end of this month. They will be joined shortly after by the long-term observers, who will be deployed throughout the country to follow the campaign period and pre-election preparations.
The short-term observers and European Parliament members and diplomats from EU member state embassies in Guatemala will join the mission over the election day period to observe voting, counting and the tabulation of results.
If a second round of the presidential election is required, the EU election observation body will remain in country until this has been completed, the European Commission said.
"I am convinced that with its presence throughout the country, this election observation mission will play an important role in enhancing transparency and public confidence," said EU Commissioner for External Relations and European Neighborhood Policy Benita Ferrero-Waldner.
"At the same time, this initiative is a renewed sign of our commitment towards stability and development in Central America," she added.
The EU has allocated 3.5 million euros (some 4.76 million U.S. dollars) to cover the costs of deploying the observers.
The EU also sent observers to Guatemala for the previous general elections in November 2003.
Source: Xinhua>
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