NewsWhore
11-14-2007, 02:00 PM
Today's Diario Libre page two editorial is a lesson in law and politics. Editor Adriano Miguel Tejada, himself a lawyer, clearly defines the role of the Central Electoral Board (JCE) according to the law. The JCE is in charge of running the elections, especially the period, more or less ninety days before the elections, until the day after a candidate is officially declared the winner. Electoral Law 275-97 says that the JCE can prohibit political campaigns outside the timeframe. Tejada says that this aspect should not be the aim of the board, even though the public would appreciate a little peace and quiet, because the JCE's essential mission is to referee the electoral game and nothing more. In this role, the board will have to decide on any controversies that arise, but the board is not "a Commissioner" responsible for balancing the different teams.
The editor then points out that the JCE is not a court that establishes constitutional guarantees. Complaints filed charging Constitutional violations have to go to the normal courts. Electoral crimes are limited by the Election Law, and it is a premise of the legal system that there is no crime nor punishment if there is no existing law describing such a violation. The current briar patch in which the JCE is currently entangled only has one exit door: Apply Paragraph 1 of Article 6 of the Election Law that orders that the decisions in the Contentious Chamber be taken after hearing from the political parties. To correct errors is intelligent. The JCE cannot permit the differences of opinion between its members to deepen, as well as the differences between the JCE and the political parties. They should reopen the issue and obtain a consensus from the parties, says Tejada.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#9)
The editor then points out that the JCE is not a court that establishes constitutional guarantees. Complaints filed charging Constitutional violations have to go to the normal courts. Electoral crimes are limited by the Election Law, and it is a premise of the legal system that there is no crime nor punishment if there is no existing law describing such a violation. The current briar patch in which the JCE is currently entangled only has one exit door: Apply Paragraph 1 of Article 6 of the Election Law that orders that the decisions in the Contentious Chamber be taken after hearing from the political parties. To correct errors is intelligent. The JCE cannot permit the differences of opinion between its members to deepen, as well as the differences between the JCE and the political parties. They should reopen the issue and obtain a consensus from the parties, says Tejada.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#9)