September 26, 2019
Union Election Commission Chairman U Hla Thein first received Swedish Ambassador Mr Staffan Herrstorm at the UEC office in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday morning.
During the meeting, they openly discussed the implementation of the strategic plan (2019-2022) for successfully organizing the 2020 General Elections, ensuring inclusivity for 18-year-olds voting for the first time, ensuring domestic migrant workers and IDPs can exercise their right to vote, conducting electoral education programmes, organizing advanced voting processes and right to vote for citizens working abroad, and increasing female participation in the election process.
Afterwards, the UEC Chairman received a delegation from the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), led by Executive Director (Headquarters, Stockholm) Ms Fiona Rowley, around 2 p.m.
There they discussed preparations to make the upcoming general elections free, fair, transparent, reliable, and trustworthy, implementation of STEP Democracy with the support of International IDEA, plans to distribute a guide to election ethics for media personnel, conducting electoral education programmes with social media, and inviting domestic and international monitoring groups.—MNA

(Translated by Zaw Htet Oo)