The National Electoral Institute of Mexico and the European Union, through its EUROsociAL+ Programme, held the III AMEA Conference in Mexico City to strengthen equitable, inclusive and violence-free democracy
© National Electoral Institute of Mexico
The third Conference of the Association of Electoral Magistrates of the Americas was held in Mexico City from 1 to 3 December in collaboration with the National Electoral Institute (INE) of Mexico, whose member Adriana Favela took over the Presidency of AMEA in October 2018, and the support of the European Union EUROsociAL+ Programme. The event brought together magistrates and former electoral magistrates from 12 Latin American countries: Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic.
Adriana Favela highlighted the struggle underway in Mexico and Latin American countries in general for women’s rights, while pointing out that efforts are being made to promote actions that help to narrow inequality gaps.
The president of the INE, Lorenzo Córdova, claimed that gender violence is the biggest obstacle to democratic coexistence: “We cannot be said to live in a democratic society as long as women and girls, one half of the population, are constantly subject to aggression in the streets, in public spaces, in transport and, worse still, in their homes.”
In addition to the National Electoral Institute of Mexico, the European Union and the EUROsociAL+ area of gender equality policies in Expertise France, the International Electoral Tribunal of the Federation Judicial Authority (Mexico), the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights and UN Women, co-organised this international event.
The President of the Superior Chamber of the Electoral Court of the Federation Judicial Authority (TEPJF), Felipe Fuentes Barrera, said that it is imperative to grant women the resources and create the conditions to allow them to participate in democracy without being hindered and humiliated, without danger and without fear: “That a candidacy does not cost a woman her life, because we want them alive and participating in politics too.”
Taking up the commitments previously acquired at the II Meeting of the AMEA that took place in Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia) in October 2018, this third meeting aimed to continue the exchange of best national practices and to promote active dialogue among AMEA members with a view to sharing experiences, tools and strategies, thus positioning AMEA as an international benchmark in promoting an equitable, inclusive and violence-free democracy. More specifically, the meeting focused on exploring the issue of political violence through a panel on “administrative and jurisdictional measures against gender-based political violence” and a workshop on “strategies for administrative and jurisdictional electoral bodies to prevent and address political violence against women”.
The AMEA was established after the VII Meeting of the Magistrates of the Electoral Organizations of Latin America held in Brasilia in 2016. It became an association in 2017. Its main purpose according to its act of incorporation is to focus on coordination and dialogue for equitable democracy among electoral bodies, to promote the exchange of best practices, to draft recommendations, to act as an observer in electoral processes and to enhance awareness among electoral bodies.
Sources and photos: National Electoral Institute of Mexico and Delegation of the European Union.
