Good morning and thank you for being here today. Our delegation is pleased to be with the people of Saint Lucia and to serve as observes in the December 11th General Elections.
Our presence on the island is at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Saint Lucia; our mandate comes from CARICOM Heads of State and Government who instructed that an observer mission be present for these elections.
As such, five of us are here representing the Caribbean Community including Mr. Clem John from Dominica, Mr. Danville Walker from Jamaica, Mrs. Versil Charles-Wright from Trinidad and Tobago, my own country Belize and Ms Jean Kennedy from the CARICOM Secretariat in Guyana. All of us are well experienced in election observer missions and all of us are either Chief Elections Officers or Former Chief Elections Officers.
Our work began prior to our arrival in Saint Lucia; in fact representatives at the CARICOM Secretariat have been preparing the necessary documentations for this Mission well in advance of our arrival.
Since our arrival Tuesday (5 December), the team here on the ground has been meeting with the Chairman of the Electoral Commission, the Chief Elections officer and other election officials. We have met with political candidates, leaders of civil organisations, and other stakeholders. Between now and election day, we plan to attend more political rallies, talk with local community activists and media personalities and walk the streets so that we can talk with the people. Our plan is to expand the scope of our activities from now through Election Day and into the counting of ballots and the declaration of results.
Ladies and Gentlemen of the press, Saint Lucia has a vibrant political culture. We are aware that our Mission here is not your regular Observer Mission- indeed we see this very much like family business. Our presence here is therefore to reinforce this healthy electoral climate to share ideas and to report on the conduct of the process. We intend to carry out our mandate without interference or interruption of the process.
After the Saint Lucian people have completed the execution of their civic duty, we will conclude the first phase of the process and proceed to produce a report of the events of the 2006 electoral campaign.
We believe that our presence here in Saint Lucia is not only a reflection of our solidarity with the Saint Lucian people, but also an indication of the commitment of CARICOM to the principles of democracy, including the right of our people to free and fair elections.
Together with the members of the OAS observer Mission we hope to visit all 17 constituencies on Election Day and through our collaboration to communicate with as many stakeholders as possible.
We know that Monday is an important day for the people of Saint Lucia we are happy to be here with you and on behalf of the rest of the CARICOM Observer team I thank you for your hospitality. I am sure I speak for the entire CARICOM Community in wishing you every success in the exercise of your constitutional right to determine the direction of this country for the next five years.
Thank you.
