Iraqi Council adopts UN proposal on independent election commission

The Iraqi Governing Council has announced that it is adopting recommendations put forward by a United Nations electoral assessment mission on the formation of the Independent Elections Commission of Iraq, a UN spokesman said today.

The UN mission, headed by Carina Perelli, travelled late last month to Iraq to assess what needs to be done in order to hold credible elections by the end of next January.

Spokesman Fred Eckhard said the Commission's task will be to oversee, prepare and conduct the elections according to the Iraqi legal framework and international standards.

This Commission will be headed by an eight-member Board of Commissioners comprising seven Iraqis and one international member. "There will now have to be a large public information campaign to encourage qualified Iraqis to be nominated to serve on this independent commission," the spokesman said.

Candidates will have to submit a package that will include, among other items, references and a personal essay, he added. Once nominations are received, the candidates will be assessed through a multi-step technical evaluation process undertaken by the UN.