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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACTS: Atlanta, Deborah Hakes +1 404 420 5124; Monrovia, Alexander Bick +231 880 938 756

The Carter Center today deployed teams of long-term observers to launch an international election observation mission for Liberia's presidential and legislative elections on Oct. 11, 2011.

Carter Center observers will meet regularly with representatives of the National Election Commission (NEC), political parties, independent candidates, civil society organizations, the international community, and domestic election observers to assess electoral preparations and the pre-electoral environment throughout the country. The Center will release periodic public statements on key findings, available at www.cartercenter.org.

"In a highly-contested electoral environment, we hope that the presence of Carter Center observers will strengthen the efforts of voters, candidates, parties, and election officials to ensure transparent, credible, and peaceful elections in October," said Carter Center Democracy Program Director David Carroll.

Observers will be joined by a larger short-term delegation in October to witness the voting, counting, and tabulation processes.

The Center's observation mission is conducted in accordance with the Guidelines and Code of Conduct for Observers issued by the NEC, as well as the Declaration of Principles for International Election Observation and Code of Conduct that was adopted at the United Nations in 2005 and has been endorsed by 37 election observation groups. The Center assesses the electoral process based on the Liberia's national legal framework and its obligations for democratic elections contained in regional and international agreements.

The Carter Center was invited by the NEC to observe the 2011 elections and previously observed elections in Liberia in 1997 and 2005.  The Center also currently works in Liberia on programs related to access to justice, access to information, and mental health. More information can be found at: www.cartercenter.org/liberia.

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"Waging Peace. Fighting Disease. Building Hope."

A not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, The Carter Center has helped to improve life for people in more than 70 countries by resolving conflicts; advancing democracy, human rights, and economic opportunity; preventing diseases; improving mental health care; and teaching farmers in developing nations to increase crop production. The Carter Center was founded in 1982 by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, in partnership with Emory University, to advance peace and health worldwide.