Many times, the best way to learn something is by doing it.
That's why Cyrille Ebotoko and Marie Danielle Luyoyo Pwenika left their homes in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in November to serve as Carter Center short-term observers in Tunisia's presidential elections.
"I have learned so many things about logistics, communications, security," Pwenika said. "I'm excited that my first observation was an international one. Everything was just great."
Pwenika and Ebotoko are now sharing what they learned with their colleagues at the Episcopal Commission of Justice and Peace, an organization run by the Catholic Church. The Carter Center has provided ongoing support to the commission since the elections of 2011, when it helped the organization deploy about 6,400 citizen observers. Now the Center is working to further develop the commission's capacity to monitor elections and to advocate for electoral reform by training a core group of observers, including Pwenika and Ebotoko, who will in turn train others.
Congolese observer Marie Danielle Luyoyo Pwenika enters election data from the Habib Thamer primary school polling station in Tunisia during the November presidential election. (All Photos: The Carter Center/G. Dubourthoumieu)
As a short term observer-in-training, Pwenika witnessed firsthand the inside of Tunisian polling stations. "I have learned so many things about logistics, communications, security," she said. "I'm excited that my first observation was an international one."
Edna Koskey, left, is the Carter Center's democratic elections standards program manager in DRC. She and Cyril Ebotoko, right, will take lessons learned while working as electoral observers in Tunisia back home as the Congo prepares for scheduled local elections in 2015 and presidential elections in 2016.
The Carter Center is working to further develop the DRC's capacity to monitor elections and to advocate for electoral reform by training a core group of observers, including Pwenika, who will in turn train others.
"It's a great and humbling experience to support the democratic growth of the country," said Edna Koskey, the Center's democratic elections standards program manager in DRC.
Monitoring elections is especially critical in a place like the Congo, which was ruled by dictator Mobutu Sese Seko for more than 25 years and has since been plagued by civil wars and conflicts.
"The Congo is huge, and the dynamics are unique," Koskey said. "The citizens don't have the skills, capabilities, or mechanisms to champion their own rights."
The observers-in-training are learning about those rights and about monitoring the complete election cycle, from the drafting of election-related laws to campaign financing, from voter registration to post-election dispute resolution.
Seeing the Center's 80-person operation in Tunisia in action on election day was especially helpful, said Ebotoko, as his team prepares for scheduled local elections in 2015 and presidential elections in 2016.
"We have learned so many things," he said. "The communication was magnificent. That is a challenge in our country. It is not the same, because it is a big country that lacks infrastructure."
The Congo has about 74,000 polling centers, he said, which means a domestic observation mission might need 30,000 observers.
"How are we going to succeed to organize such a big mission?"
The challenge is great, but Ebotoko is excited about the possibilities. He thinks the Center's open-source election monitoring software - called ELMO - could prove useful in improving communication because it makes it possible to share observer data in real time.
Good elections, he says, are essential in his war-torn homeland.
"Throughout history, the Congo has had many problems and political differences and wars," Ebotoko said. "And all of these problems have only one main cause - the struggle for power. Peace in the Congo can only happen with transparent and fair elections. This is why we really appreciate the experience of The Carter Center."
Published March 10, 2015.
Related Resources
Learn more about the Center's Democracy Program
Learn more about Tunisia's presidential elections
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