The tricky task of being an election observer

Margret Kiener Nellen is a seasoned international election observer and Swiss politician. She says a strong constitutional basis is essential to guarantee fundamental rights for individual citizens and minorities. But she doubts whether Swiss-style direct democracy can be applied in any other country. “Such a system might work best in a modern society and in a small country,” Kiener Nellen says. “But it comes with a price.” History has shown that it served Switzerland through good times and bad and helped integrate minorities, be they linguistic, religious or social, she says. “It certainly took a while to develop direct democracy and the system has to remain flexible enough to cope with new challenges.” Kiener Nellen, a trained lawyer and translator with years of experience as a politician at a local and national level, has been an election observer for the 57-nation Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), whose mandate includes the promotion ...