DA and other parties reach out to international community to ensure quality elections in SA

Several parties belonging to the DA led Multi-Party Charter (MPC) have written letters to various international governments to seek help in ensuring that South Africa’s elections are free and fair.

MPC partners concerned about results

The Multi-Party Charter signatories said they wanted the outcome of the elections to reflect the will of the majority of South Africans. The parties involved include: the IFP, the DA, ACDP, ActionSA and others.

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“The 11 parties to the Multi-Party Charter for South Africa have written to a variety of foreign ministers and other representatives of relevant organisations, to request their assistance in ensuring that the results of the upcoming national and provincial elections accurately reflect the will of the people of South Africa. These foreign ministers and organisations exist in the east and the west, the global north and global south as well as the African continent,” the parties said in a statement.

The parties said while they have “qualified” confidence in the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC), they were aware that they have assembled the biggest voting bloc outside of the ANC in the history of SA democracy.

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“This, alongside the certain loss of a national ANC majority this year, means that the efforts to capture this election will be greater than ever before. We recognise that our domestic efforts to ensure electoral integrity can and must be shored up,” the parties said.

Concerns about international interference

The parties said they have also conveyed concern about the potential for foreign interference in the South African elections.

“We believe the international community can help to safeguard against any attempts to disrupt the democratic process or influence the South African electorate. Such technical support has been a core element of ensuring free and fair elections dating back to the first democratic election in 1994, which saw the election of Nelson Mandela,” they said.

 The MPC parties have also appealed to foreign governments and relevant organisations to recognise the high stakes involved – for South Africa, for the continent of Africa, and for democracies globally.

“The 2024 elections will be the most crucial to take place in South Africa since 1994. For the first time in democratic South Africa, the ANC looks set to receive well below 50% of the national vote. This presents a window of opportunity for the democratic transfer of power to an alternative government. But it also inevitably heightens the threat to electoral integrity,” the parties said.

In a recent interview president Cyril Ramaphosa assured the nation that the IEC was one of the most trusted electoral agencies on the continent. He said vote rigging was impossible in South Africa.

The IEC also refuted remarks of possible vote rigging in these elections. The organisation called on anyone with knowledge of foul play to come forward.