The Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) has stated that while last Monday’s elections were peaceful, they fell short of being free and fair.
In a statement today, the GHRA said while international election observer missions have commended Guyanese citizens and the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) for conducting the 2025 elections free from violence, fear, and intimidation, none of the five Observer Missions—the European Union (EU), the Organization of American States (OAS), the Commonwealth, CARICOM, and the Carter Center—concluded that the elections met the standards of being ‘free’ and ‘fair’.
“All observer missions highlighted the ruling Peoples Progressive Party’s (PPP) abuse of incumbency, citing the use of state media, state-owned property, government vehicles, and personnel to advance the party’s campaign. Despite these advantages, the PPP fell short of securing a two-thirds parliamentary majority, with lower-than-expected voter turnout in its traditional strongholds,” the GHRA said.
The association said while elections day itself must be commended for no-violence or major incidents, the deficiencies of the Elections Commission cannot go unnoticed.
It said the Commission’s dependence on nominations from the two major parties limits its independence, making it unable to make decisions that could threaten the interests of those parties.
The GHRA and other civic bodies have constantly called for implementation of electoral reforms agreed unanimously in the constitutional reform process of year 2000.
While agreed to by both major parties, no major changes have been implemented. Even declaring the 10 Regions as constituencies, a supposedly one-off transitory arrangement for the 2001 Elections has never been converted into single seats,’ the GHRA said.
The association also notes the rise of the newly formed WIN party and the dramatic decline for of the APNU, pointing out that WIN’s presence in the political sphere can now change the country’s voting pattern.
“Ex-President Bharrat Jagdeo’s disappointment over the PNC’s decline as the main opposition party was evident. Beyond policy positions, WIN’s rise may help reduce decades-long ethnic polarization between Afro- and Indo-Guyanese communities, an unexpected but welcome development,” the association noted.
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