Foreign observers, including representatives from the US, Canada, Russia, OIC, and the Arab Parliament, have unanimously described Sunday's general elections as free, fair, peaceful, and legitimate.

They commended the election process in Bangladesh, with one observer emphasizing that the caretaker government system, which the opposition BNP boycotted, was considered anti-democratic.

Shaoquett Moselmane, an observer from Australia, stated, “It's been a very fair and free process for people walking in. There's a lot of good security and a very transparent process.”

Jim Bates, a former US Congressman, echoed similar sentiments, saying at a press conference, “I found the election to be very peaceful, free, and fair.” The government extended invitations to numerous foreign observers from various countries and multilateral organizations to oversee the elections despite the opposition's boycott. Observers visited polling centers in the capital Dhaka and neighboring districts, sharing their experiences later at a press conference.

Andrey Y Shutov from the Russian election commission, CEO of the central election commission of Palestine Hisham Kuhail, Mohamadou Musa Njie of the Gambia High Commission, Scottish MP Martyn Day, head of the election unit of the OIC Shakir Mahmood Bandar, member of Arab Parliament Abdihakim Moalliam, executive director of South Asia Democratic Forum Paulo Casaca, and Members of the Canadian Parliament Victor OH and Chandrakanth Arya, among others, participated and shared positive experiences. Despite the low voter turnout of around 40%, former US Congressman Jim Bates recommended extending voting hours to increase participation. He noted, “Elections in Bangladesh have the shortest voting hours, from 8 am to 4 pm, compared to other countries of the world.”

South Asia Democratic Forum Executive Director Paulo Casaca expressed admiration for Bangladesh's democratic process, stating, "The electoral process is very good, marvelous, and magnificent in Bangladesh," and he critiqued the caretaker government system as anti-democratic.

CEO of American Global Strategies Alexander B Gray, after visiting 10 polling centers, asserted, "I saw with my own eyes that the election was free and fair, and professionally administered, having a high degree of enthusiasm from the voters, polling staff, and others concerned."

Members of the central election commission of the Russian Federation Andrey Y Shutov commended the active participation of voters in Bangladesh, emphasizing that this determined engagement made the election legitimate.

Chandrakanth Arya from Canada congratulated the Election Commission for conducting a very free, fair, and successful election and refrained from commenting on the BNP election boycott, stating, “The election process was free, so we accepted it.”

Martin Day, an MP from Scotland, described the polling process as "very smooth and quite impressive," and Hisham Kuhail of Palestine praised the efficient use of resources and the peaceful nature of the election process.

Shakir Mahmood Bandar from the OIC congratulated the government for the "successful" conduct of the elections, stating, "Till now, the election is being conducted fairly," even as the counting was still ongoing after 5 pm.

BOB Post