Elections Commission of the Maldives (ECM) has amended its regulations to ban individuals who have been found guilty of a crime from becoming observers or monitors of elections or from representing a candidate.
The current regulations state applicants who wish to become observers, monitors, or representatives of candidates need to be at least 18 years of age, not be serving a sentence for a crime, and not be already attending a job related to the election. They should also not be military or police officers, a judge, or a member of a non-governmental organisation, and should not have submitted an application for another job related to the election.
The new amendments to the regulations state that the applicant should not be a person found guilty of a crime in the past five years or confirmed by ECM to have violated the election procedures. It states that ECM has the authority to give them permission to become observers, monitors, or representatives in such cases.
