Emergency Grant Aid for the General Elections and the Provincial Assemblies Elections of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan

June 29, 2007

On June 29 (Fri), the Government of Japan decided to extend emergency grant aid totaling about $3.5 million (about 406 million yen) to support the holding of general and provincial elections of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in a fair and smooth manner through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is undertaking to support operations for these elections. Japan’s assistance will be allocated to purchase translucent ballot boxes, tamper-resistant seals, and screens at voting stations.

Since Army Chief General Pervez Musharraf took power by a bloodless coup d'état in 1999, Pakistan has been steadily moving forward to resume democracy by taking various steps such as holding a general election and elections for provincial assemblies in 2002. According to the constitution, the upcoming elections are supposed to be held due to the end of terms of the lower-house and provincial-assembly members elected in 2002. The international community is paying close attention to the coming elections which will show the judgments of the people of Pakistan on the series of policies by President Musharraf including democratization, miscellaneous reforms of the country’s systems, and fighting against terrorism.

As Foreign Minister Taro Aso announced in the 14th summit meeting of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) held in April this year, the Government of Japan has been actively supporting democratization in the South-Asian region which is located in the center of an ‘Arc of Freedom and Prosperity.’ Japan has been consistently calling for the consolidation of democracy in Pakistan. In this context, Japan dispatched election observers for the election in 2002. As Japan considers that Pakistan’s development as a ‘moderate and modern Islamic state’ will contribute to peace and prosperity in the whole region, Japan will continue to support Pakistan’s effort for the consolidation of democracy.

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