Mauritius and Uruguay Join International IDEA

Press Release:

Mauritius and Uruguay Join International IDEA

Stockholm, 25 October 1999 -- Mauritius and Uruguay have become new members of the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA).

The Institute now has 19 governments as members and five international non-governmental organizations as associate members.

"We warmly welcome Mauritius and Uruguay to International IDEA and believe that they will become valuable and contributing members to the work of the Institute", says Bengt Säve-Söderbergh, Secretary-General of International IDEA.

Mauritius has a long tradition of parliamentary democracy. Independent in 1968 from the British colonial government, the country has since then achieved economic and political stability.

Uruguay also has a long tradition of democratic rule with the interruption between 1973 and 1984 when the military took power. A democratic government was reinstated in 1985 and the country is today a representative democracy.

This was the fourth time after its foundation in 1995 that International IDEA accepted new members.

The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) was founded in February 1995. The Institute’s overall objective is to promote and advance sustainable democracy world-wide and to improve and consolidate electoral processes. To date, there are currently 19 member-states: Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Botswana, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Finland, India, Mauritius, Namibia, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, and Uruguay. There are currently five associate members: International Federation of Journalists, International Press Institute, Parliamentarians for Global Action, the Inter-American Institute for Human Rights and Transparency International. International IDEA also has formal agreements with the International Commission of Jurists, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the United Nations Development Programme, the Inter-American Development Bank, and co-operates closely with Switzerland.