Poll watch to help disabled during vote

TANGERANG: South Tangerang Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu)said that it would join the effort by the ASEAN General Election Network for Disability Access (AGENDA) to monitor access for disabled persons in polling stations during the Banten gubernatorial election slated for October this year.

South Tangerang Panwaslu chairman Fahri Artha Winata said that the initiative would be the first in the region.

“We also call on the local election commission to pay more detail to the need of disabled people while they cast their ballots,” he said, adding that among the most pressing problems included the lack of access for hospital patients to cast their votes.

“We need to learn from the Philippines, which has applied an electronic voting system for disabled persons,” he said.

Riri Rafiani of AGENDA said that the network aimed at improving access for disabled voters throughout the Southeast Asian region.

“Over the past two years, we have involved local organizations in Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia to conduct research and share information on the best practices to guarantee voting rights for the disabled,” she said.