In the draft of the Integrated Election Bill prepared by the Commission, it is also proposed to collect the details of Nepali citizens living abroad in the electoral roll. However, the government has kept the draft submitted by the commission for 26 months.
The issue of giving the right to vote to Nepali adults living abroad has been discussed for decades, but due to the lack of necessary preparations, it has not been implemented. It has been seen that this topic is raised before every election and it is closed after the election.
Home Minister Omprakash Aryal of the interim government formed after the Gen-G rebellion said that voters living abroad will be given the opportunity to vote in the upcoming elections, this time it has been discussed again. However, the level of preparation that the government and the Election Commission should start for that, does not seem to have started.
The Supreme Court had issued a directive order on 9 Chait 2074 in the name of the government and the commission to grant voting rights to adult Nepalis living abroad. According to that, if the government and the commission had proceeded with the work, it would have been practiced in the 2079 election itself. However, indifference has been seen in its preparation.
It is necessary to put many issues in the election law, such as the right to vote for Nepali adults living abroad, the arrangement of polling stations with the collection of names for the voter list, who will be the polling officer from abroad. In the draft of the Integrated Election Bill prepared by the
commission, it has been proposed to collect the details of Nepali citizens living abroad in the electoral roll. However, the government has kept the draft submitted by the commission for 26 months. The Supreme Court had sent a letter to the government and the commission in July last, advising the implementation of its order.
When Nepali citizens who have gone abroad are receiving money from their remittances, the demand that they should have the right to vote is getting stronger. Former Acting Chief Election Commissioner Dolakh Bahadur Gurung says that every Nepali citizen who has reached the age of 18 has the natural right to vote. According to Article 84(5) of the Constitution, every Nepali citizen who has completed 18 years of age has the right to vote in any constituency according to the federal law.
Gurung said that the rights of the citizens who have gone abroad for employment will also be protected. He says that since there is a mixed election system, it is difficult to get citizens abroad to participate in direct voting, but it would be better if the government could make them participate in proportional voting.
When Gurung was the Acting Chief Commissioner, the commission also studied the possibility of voting rights for Nepali citizens living abroad in 2067/68. "Many challenges and complications were found in getting Nepali citizens abroad to participate in voting from there. But, it is not impossible," he said, "for that, the government should be involved. The commission does not just want to. It is the government that will gather the resources, means and necessary management.'
Gurung said that although he did not know how much the Home Minister of the interim government had studied and said that Nepalese citizens living abroad would be able to vote, it was not as easy as he wanted or said.
"Elections have been announced on February 21, and in the current situation, the commission is in a position to hold regular elections," he added. You have to prepare more for that.
Even though it is not possible at the current pace, he sees that this facility can be provided for Nepali voters in certain countries by using resources from all over the world. According to Gurung, it is estimated that there are 40 million Nepalis abroad from the preliminary study conducted in 2067, as the government does not even have accurate data on how many Nepalis are currently in which country, so it is necessary to prepare accordingly.
Election Commission Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari said that the Commission is in favor of voting rights and facilities for Nepali citizens living abroad.
"The commission is ready to provide voting facilities to Nepalese voters abroad if the government has made necessary reforms in the existing law and has raised resources for it," he added, "of course there are challenges and complications." Commissioner Bhandari said that the current law does not give the right to vote to citizens living abroad.
A former commissioner of the commission argues that the issue of giving voting rights to Nepalese citizens abroad is not easy. "This is not an easy issue that will be implemented if the government or the commission wants," he said without mentioning names, "the consensus between political parties on this is the first step." Even in the past, the parties were not in agreement on this matter in the consultations held by the commission.'
Commenting on the Supreme Court's order without considering the country's resources, he added, 'After the Supreme Court gave the order, the commission had to say that it can be done. However, none of the subsequent governments have prioritized this issue and proceeded with preparations.'
It seems that to give voting rights to citizens abroad, legal infrastructure, agreement between parties, finalization of laws on how elections will be held abroad, and collection of voter lists should be increased. Nepalis have reached most of the 170 countries in the world. The commissioner said that a decision should also be reached about which countries will provide that facility. "While giving voting rights to Nepali citizens in America, should we give them to those in Japan?" he said, "America, Japan, Australia or Gulf
If Nepalis in the country are to be given that right, then why not give it to those in India? Can passport and visa holders only be treated unequally with their own citizens by giving that facility or not? Many such topics need to be clarified.'
Since many of the Nepali citizens living abroad have taken the citizenship of the respective country, it is also complicated to differentiate between having/not having a foreign citizenship as such a person can also take this facility. Similarly, how to collect voter list? If the ballot box is to be placed at the embassy on the day of voting, it should be easy for voters from all over to come there/or not, whether the person is present at the polling station in person or by postal or online voting. It seems that a timely solution to such complications should be found.
Former Acting Chief Commissioner Gurung stresses that it is a difficult matter to successfully vote abroad by distributing ballots and placing ballot boxes.
'Now is the era of technology and internet. Using technology, we should go to the same method as where banking transactions have been done," he added, "After the finalization of the voter list, a structure should be developed to facilitate secure and secret voting for the concerned voters based on technology. It should also be trustworthy.
In some Muslim countries, Gulf countries and communist-ruled countries, there may be a situation where the respective countries do not allow voting even in embassies, he said. Gurung emphasizes that the government should find a solution through diplomatic efforts with the countries concerned.
