Institute of Foreign Affairs, a government think-tank under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, organized a discussion on ‘democracy and election: neighborhood experience.’ The discussion held on May 9 was attended by experts and journalists. 

In the beginning, Matrika Poudyal, spokesperson at IFA, presented the objectives and importance of the program. 

Elaborating on the status of elections and democracy in South Asian countries, Poudyal said sharing of ideas and opinions to make the election system more responsible and democratic has become a prominent topic.

Rajendra Pandey, acting executive director of IFA, shared his knowledge of various aspects of democracy and elections including international experiences. Pandey said IFA as a policy institute has continuously been organizing discussions on policy issues. 

Experts and journalists discussed electoral governance, the situation of democracy in South Asian countries, and other various aspects of election and democracy. Speaking at the program, journalist Kamal Dev Bhattarai stressed strengthening institutions to ensure free and fair elections, the cornerstone of democracy. 

He presented a comparative study of electoral governance in South Asian countries. Along with vibrant state institutions, strong media and civil society institutions can play a vital role to maintain the integrity of elections, he said.

Journalist Chandra Shekhar Adhikari said to ensure a vibrant democracy, countries of this region should take measures for electoral reform. Adhikari was of the view that political influence on the functioning of the EC is posing a threat to free elections. 

Journalist Ritu Raj Subdei said that political parties are using money to influence the voting pattern. The first step towards free and fair elections is reform in the political parties, he said. Journalist Salik Subedi highlighted the key factors that contribute to strengthening democracy. He further talked about the close interlink between election and democracy. 

Political scientist Chandra Dev Bhatt highlighted the various facets of democracy and election. He said that only holding regular elections does not guarantee a deep-rooted democracy. Journalist Jagdishwar Pandey stressed creating vibrant institutions in order to embolden democracy. We have to guarantee the autonomy of institutions that are mandated for holding the elections which are not happening, he said.