Election observers are threatened, harassed, arrested, or even murdered in many neighboring countries. Still, they keep up their work. During this election, 26 international observers will travel all over Norway, looking at the Norwegian democracy through the glasses of one living in a dictatorship.

 

Many autocratic states have elections and invite election observers. The question is however: Do elections, and observation of them, contribute to legitimation of the authoritarian regime?

 

This is what an international panel of observers will discuss. Bjørn Engesland, secretary general, Norwegian Helsinki Committee, will also present the findings from the observers.

 

The panel:

• Viktoriya Tyuleneva, director of Freedom House Kazakhstan
• Mammad Mammadzad, acting executive director of EMDS, Azerbaijan
• Artsiom Harbatsevich, journalist at Nasha Niva, Belarus
• Håvard Nygård, Research Director at PRIO

 

For registration, please email: hald@nhc.no