Jordan Times
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Iraqi expatriates in
Jordan cast ballots on second day of overseas voting
By Alia Shukri Hamzeh, Dalya Dajani and Rami Abdulrahman
AMMAN — Iraqi expatriates in the Kingdom continued to cast their ballots on the
second day of the out-of-country vote, undeterred by the looming threats posed
to the lives of their families back home.
Polling centres opened Friday in 12 stations around Jordan, one of 14 countries
where Iraqis were given the opportunity to determine the future of their
war-ravaged country.
A total of 9,721 Iraqi expatriates, out of 20,166, who registered in the
Kingdom, cast their ballots on the first day of the voting process, which ends
today, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), which
runs the Iraqi out-of-country voting programme.
IOM officials said voter turnout was good around polling stations in Jordan over
the first two days and expressed hope that all the registered Iraqis would be
able to cast their ballots by Sunday, polling day in Iraq.
“As far as we know all activities at the polling stations have gone smoothly,”
IOM media officer Darren Boisvert said.
“In fact, Jordan had one of the highest voter turnouts out of all the countries,
with 42 per cent of those registered voting on Friday,” he added.
According to the IOM official, only the United Arab Emirates had a higher
percentage, with a 50 per cent voter turnout on Friday. Around 30 per cent of
those registered around the world voted Friday.
In contrast with Iraq, where the run-up to elections has been marred by
continuous violence within the country, overseas operations have so far been
running smoothly, officials said.
But, the turnout for overseas registration and voting in the landmark polls were
still regarded as low and far below expectations, due to what many described as
a general sense of apathy and lack of trust in the entire process. Others cited
fear of retribution, by those who were boycotting the elections back home and
threatened to take action against voters, as a factor for staying away from
polls.
A nine-day registration process began Jan. 17 with optimistic estimates of up to
a million expatriate Iraqis registrants. However, only 280,000 signed up. More
than 60,000 of which were in neighbouring Iran.
In Jordan, 20,166 of the estimated 200,000 expatriate Iraqis registered to vote.
Unofficial estimates, however, put the number of Iraqi residing in the Kingdom
at more than 500,000.
Hundreds of Iraqis showed up at the polling stations in the Kingdom, which had
police vehicles stationed at the entrances. After being searched, the voters'
registration documents were verified before they were allowed to choose their
candidates for the 275-member national assembly.
An 18-year-old Iraqi girl, who turned up with her cousin at the Sweifieh Girls
High School on Saturday said, she was confident about casting her vote despite
the growing instability in Iraq.
The two university students, who reside in Baghdad, came to Jordan during the
Eid holiday and took advantage of the safe voting conditions here to cast their
ballots.
“We weren't afraid to vote today as we believe it is the duty of every Iraqi to
determine their future,” said the undergraduate computer engineer, who preferred
not to be named.
“I spoke with my father earlier today and he said he intended to vote when
polling begins in Iraq tomorrow as long as it is safe,” she added.
Large posters with the names of those running for the council and their
coalitions were placed outside the polling rooms, to help voters choose
candidates. Booklets carrying the names of candidates were also handed out to
those casting their ballots.
Although many Iraqis had complained earlier that they know nothing about the
candidates or their agendas, many voters who entered the stations said they had
their minds set on whom to vote for. But then again, there were some exceptions.
A middle-aged Iraqi woman with dual Jordanian and Iraqi nationality, said media
campaigns on satellite channels encouraged her to register for elections.
Examining the long list of candidates and political entities at a polling
station in Khalda, the woman was at a loss at who to vote for.
“I've been living here with my Jordanian husband for more than 20 years, so I
have little idea about each candidate or political entity,” said the woman, who
preferred to remain anonymous.
“Nevertheless, I know I should elect someone even if the elections only
represents 1 per cent of all Iraqi people... this is just the start of democracy
and I'm voting as part of my contribution to render these elections successful”
she added.
IOM posters urging Iraqis to cast their votes are visible around Amman, while
campaign posters, mainly promoting the parties of interim Prime Minister Iyad
Allawi and interim President Ghazi Al Yawer, were hung near or inside polling
stations.
Some Iraqi businessmen promoting certain candidates reportedly hired buses to
take voters to polling stations.
Another unnamed Iraqi, who is visiting family members in Amman, said he elected
candidates whom he knew personally. For this middle-aged man wearing the red
kufiyyeh, democracy is about choosing your representatives, even if they are
family. “I feel that many mistakes will take place in these elections, but I
know that if they work out, Iraqis would rest knowing that this is as good as it
gets,” he said, adding that security is his top concern.
According to organisers, polls will stay open for 10 hours from 7:00am local
time on each of the three days in the 36 cities and 14 countries involved. Some
253 observers have been accredited to monitor the process.
The IOM will start counting ballots on Monday and the results of the expatriate
vote will be sent to the electoral commission in Bagh-dad on Feb. 5.
The overall outcome of the vote will be announced in Iraq at an undetermined
date, IOM officials said.