Press Release: Hague Conference

Hague Conference to Discuss
External Assistance to Political Parties

The role of political parties in the process of democratization, opportunities for supporting political parties and the need for closer international co-ordination and democracy networking will be in focus at a major international conference to be held in The Hague on April 24-25.

The conference, titled 'Network Democracy: Enhancing the Role of Political Parties' is jointly organized by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) and the newly-founded Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (IMD), which will be formally launched at the event.

Attending the conference will be a range of national and international representatives of political parties, NGOs, governments, international organizations and academic experts. Participants include Eveline Herfkens, Dutch Minister for Development Co-operation, Martin Lee, Chair of the Hong Kong Democratic Party, Kasuka Mutukwa, Secretary-General of the Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum (SADC-PF) and Margaret Dongo, President of the Zimbabwe Union of Democrats (ZUD). The Conference will open with an address by Minister Herfkens.

Established in April 2000, the IMD is a new organization of Dutch political parties, whose main objective is to support the process of democratization in young democracies by strengthening political parties.

International IDEA is an intergovernmental organization that promotes sustainable democracy and improves and consolidates electoral processes world-wide.

International IDEA Handbook on Funding of Parties and Election Campaigns

The conference will also see the presentation of International IDEA's forthcoming Handbook on Funding of Parties and Election Campaigns. Scandals surrounding the financing of election campaigns and political parties are rarely out of the news today, bringing with it a growing recognition of the need to examine critically existing policy and legislative frameworks for dealing with this vital component of democracy in practice. To this end the new International IDEA Handbook examines options for improving the functioning and funding of political parties, including methods of disclosure, systems of transparency, alternative methods for income generation and the role of external funding.

"The viability of political parties in today's transitional democracies is critically dependent upon some form of dependable funding. Equally, the credibility of political parties in today's established democracies is increasingly threatened by unregulated, dubious funding", says Professor Reg Austin, Director of Programmes, International IDEA.

"This comparative study of practice and law across the globe examines all aspects of funding and will be a unique source of experience and information for governments, politicians, reformers and students of multi-party democracy world-wide".

The Handbook on Funding of Parties and Election Campaigns breaks new ground in the global collection of information on political finance laws. It includes:

• A study of political finance laws and subsidies for 60 countries - believed to be the largest collection of such information to date.

• Studies on political financing in different regions and types of countries:
  Africa, Asia, North America and Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, and Latin America.

The Handbook is primarily intended for the practitioner and reformers in the field. It does not advocate a specific model of party financing, leaving this to be determined by individual countries and their electorates. Instead, by offering a description of various models of political finance around the world, their legal framework and the options they make available, the Handbook aims to serve as a key point of reference for countries in developing their own national policy structures.

Overall, one of the Handbook's key findings is that there is no shortage of either legislation or subsidy for political campaigning around the world. In many countries, however, the problem is that existing regulations are blatantly disregarded. There is, to quote the Handbook, 'too much law, and too little enforcement'.

In advance of the Handbook's publication, a summary Overview will be made available to the press on the first day of the Hague Conference (see above).

Practical Information for the Press

A Press Briefing for national and international media will be held on the first day of the Hague conference.

Date and Time: Tuesday 24 April, 14.30 - 15.30
Location: De Ridderzaal

The Briefing will begin with a short presentation of the organizations co-hosting the conference.

Speakers:

Klaas Groenveld, Acting Chairperson, IMD
Bengt Säve-Söderbergh, Secretary-General, International IDEA

This will be followed by a presentation of the International IDEA Handbook on Funding of Parties and Election Campaigns. The speakers will be a number of key Handbook contributors.

Copies of the Handbook Overview will be available at the Briefing. Attached please also find the conference programme.

Press accreditation for the main conference and the press briefings:

For further information about IMD contact:
Mrs A. Mijnsbergen, IMD Secretariat
Dromerstraat 55, 1511 CM Oostzaan, The Netherlands
Tel: +31756842649 Fax: +31756842679
E-mail: mijnsbergen@planet.nl
Website: http://www.nimd.org/

For further information about International IDEA contact:
Mark Salter, Senior Information Officer
International IDEA, Strömsborg, 103 34 Stockholm, Sweden
Tel: +46-8-698 3714 Fax: +46-8-202422
E-mail: m.salter@idea.int
Website: http://www.idea.int