Daloa, 19 August 2009...The United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), on Tuesday 18 August 2009, organised training on human rights and election observation for civil society groups in Vavoua. About 50 people, including representatives of political parties, the media, youth and women associations, as well as religious and community leaders, took part in the training.

Speaking at the opening, Omer Kalameu, leader of UNOCI's delegation and human rights Officer in Daloa, said that the seminar was aimed at training participants on the universal norms and principles of human rights linked to elections. According to the human rights expert, it focused in particular on developing the skills of participants with regard to elections observation, so they are able to respond appropriately when faced with violations of human rights in the democratic process.

The 3rd deputy mayor of Vavoua, Emile Séhi Bah, thanked UNOCI for the initiative, welcomed the pertinence of the theme, and stated that all the elected representatives of the district agreed with its objectives.

In his contribution, the deputy prefect of Vavoua, Martin Boni Djédjé, said that the training would contribute to peacekeeping in Côte d'Ivoire.

The various presentations focused on United Nations norms with regard to elections, detailed reviews of international criteria, elections observation, the role of the different actors involved in the organisation of elections, and electoral recourse mechanisms were provided by UNOCI staff as well as Ivorian experts, including the Public Prosecutor of Daloa's Court of Appeal.