By: Daniel Pelletier
Pace International Law Review, Junior Associate
Voice of America news reports that the election monitoring website SudanVoteMonitor.com is being blocked from access within Sudan. The website was established to allow those in Sudan to upload video, text and messages and help document the election process. Without access to the website, Sudanese citizens and observers are unable to upload evidence of irregularities in the voting process.
The website is operated by the US-based Sudan Institute for Research and Policy and the Asmaa Society for Development, located in Khartoum. Sudan Vote Monitor compiles the data uploaded and presents it as a timeline and a map for independent assessment.
The national election vote in Sudan was extended from the originally planned three days to five days due to issues related to long delays at polling places, poor organization and unavailability of ballots at some polling places. The elections are the result of a peace compromise between the ruling government of Sudan and the Southern People’s Liberation Movement, who have been at war for twenty years. Meanwhile, Sudan Tribune reports that two major opposition parties have agreed to accept the results of the election and to join in a government of unity. With the election results not yet final, but with the ruling National Congress Party and its candidate Uman al-Bashir expected to win, the parties have agreed to a power-sharing agreement with the ruling government.