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Decision 2013: Police warn against erasing electoral ink stamps in passports
Vote 2013 | 18.02.13 | 16:03
The Armenian police have issued a statement calling on voters to
refrain from using various means to erase ink stamps in the passports
(which prove their participation in the vote) and warn it could be
considered as a violation of the electoral law.
`The Armenian Police are calling on citizens not to erase, damage or
deface a stamp in the passports, proving the participation in the
vote, using technical and other means. A lot of video materials have
appeared on the Internet, showing how to erase the stamp ink, put by
the electoral commission representatives, by using various chemicals,
such as hydrogen peroxide, wet towel wipes or other means. Without
referring to the 21st century scientific achievements, including the
chemistry of various dyes and bleach means, the Armenian police warn
that all materials in the internet related to the issue can be
qualified as a violation of the electoral rights, obstacles to the
electoral commission's work, the preparation or an attempt to vote
more than once and warn to refrain from it.'
The media experiments on ink disappearing in the passports have been
appearing on online social networking sites, in particular on Facebook
from the morning; the photos and video are shared both by ordinary
users and by media organizations. Presidential candidate Raffi
Hovanissian also shared a video on disappearing ink on his Facebook
account.
Eduard Sharmazanov, a deputy speaker of the ruling Republican Party,
insisted, however, that the ink stamp in his passport was not
erasable.
`I went to the polls, and the stamp in my passport cannot be erased
with napkins or other means,' said Sharmazanov.
Instead Sharmazanov urges citizens to personally check their own
passports. `I would ask Raffi Hovannisian, instead of making
groundless claims, to use the opportunity provided by our
headquarter,' said Sharmazanov, reminding that the headquarters of
the incumbent have ceded the right to their proxies to two opposition
challengers, including Hovannisian and Hrant Bagratyan. According to
him, the candidates ought to have taken this opportunity and then
there would not be talk about repeated voting.
The ink, which has in fact proved easily erasable with the aid of a
simple wet tissue, was publicly tested by the Central Election
Commission (CEC) last week.
Ink stamps (which should vanish within 12 hours after the ballot), the
idea of which is to prevent multiple voting, were first used in the
2012 May Parliamentary elections. But then many voters complained that
ink was vanishing very fast, which sparked opposition allegations
about electoral fraud. The CEC, however, has insisted that ink stamps
are only an additional safeguard against fraud and irregularities with
them cannot be proof of electoral fraud.
http://armenianow.com/vote_2013/43607/armenian_police_statement_presidential_elections_i nk_stamps
Vote 2013 | 18.02.13 | 16:03
The Armenian police have issued a statement calling on voters to
refrain from using various means to erase ink stamps in the passports
(which prove their participation in the vote) and warn it could be
considered as a violation of the electoral law.
`The Armenian Police are calling on citizens not to erase, damage or
deface a stamp in the passports, proving the participation in the
vote, using technical and other means. A lot of video materials have
appeared on the Internet, showing how to erase the stamp ink, put by
the electoral commission representatives, by using various chemicals,
such as hydrogen peroxide, wet towel wipes or other means. Without
referring to the 21st century scientific achievements, including the
chemistry of various dyes and bleach means, the Armenian police warn
that all materials in the internet related to the issue can be
qualified as a violation of the electoral rights, obstacles to the
electoral commission's work, the preparation or an attempt to vote
more than once and warn to refrain from it.'
The media experiments on ink disappearing in the passports have been
appearing on online social networking sites, in particular on Facebook
from the morning; the photos and video are shared both by ordinary
users and by media organizations. Presidential candidate Raffi
Hovanissian also shared a video on disappearing ink on his Facebook
account.
Eduard Sharmazanov, a deputy speaker of the ruling Republican Party,
insisted, however, that the ink stamp in his passport was not
erasable.
`I went to the polls, and the stamp in my passport cannot be erased
with napkins or other means,' said Sharmazanov.
Instead Sharmazanov urges citizens to personally check their own
passports. `I would ask Raffi Hovannisian, instead of making
groundless claims, to use the opportunity provided by our
headquarter,' said Sharmazanov, reminding that the headquarters of
the incumbent have ceded the right to their proxies to two opposition
challengers, including Hovannisian and Hrant Bagratyan. According to
him, the candidates ought to have taken this opportunity and then
there would not be talk about repeated voting.
The ink, which has in fact proved easily erasable with the aid of a
simple wet tissue, was publicly tested by the Central Election
Commission (CEC) last week.
Ink stamps (which should vanish within 12 hours after the ballot), the
idea of which is to prevent multiple voting, were first used in the
2012 May Parliamentary elections. But then many voters complained that
ink was vanishing very fast, which sparked opposition allegations
about electoral fraud. The CEC, however, has insisted that ink stamps
are only an additional safeguard against fraud and irregularities with
them cannot be proof of electoral fraud.
http://armenianow.com/vote_2013/43607/armenian_police_statement_presidential_elections_i nk_stamps