Peter Erben is a senior electoral manager with global experience in directing, advising and supporting complex elections in post-conflict, transitional and developing countries, usually working for or along with the European Union, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the International Foundation for Electoral Systems and the United Nations. [1]
From 1992 to 1995, Peter Erben worked for the European Union Monitoring Mission (ECMM) as a political analyst during its effort to observe, report and mitigate conflicts as they swept the Balkans.
In 1996, Erben joined the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Bosnia and Herzegovina. [2] While at the OSCE, he participated in managing the first four post-conflict elections, ending up as the Chief of Staff for the mission. With this experience, Peter Erben set out on a career focused on the management of elections and became one of a few international experts entrusted with directing elections for other nations. [3]
In 2000, on behalf of the OSCE and the UN, he co-directed the first post-conflict election in Kosovo and became the Chief Electoral Officer of Kosovo for the second election in 2001. [4] [5]
In 2005, Erben was appointed by the UN and President Hamid Karzai as the Chief Electoral Officer of Afghanistan [6] for its first parliamentary elections. In both Kosovo and Afghanistan, Peter Erben was, as the Chief Electoral Officer, a member of the Election Commission.ir
Erben also directed the Afghan out-of-country election in Pakistan and Iran in 2004, [7] and the Iraq out-of-country worldwide election in 2005 which included countries such as Australia, France, the US, Syria, Iran and the United Arab Emirates. [8] [9] [10] Together, these electoral operations engaged a total of over 250,000 staff at their peak, with combined budgets of over $300 million.[ citation needed ]
When not managing elections, Erben uses his experience to assist other nations in establishing and strengthening their electoral institutions. He acted as a senior adviser to election commissions and managed large donor assistance programs for the European Commission and the International Foundation for Election Systems (IFES) in places such as the Palestinian Territories, Nepal, Pakistan, Myanmar, Indonesia and Ukraine. [11]
Erben has also worked on shorter assignments throughout the world, leading missions to Lebanon, the Philippines, Iraq, Georgia, Bangladesh, Libya, and other countries.[ citation needed ]
Today, Erben is the Senior Global Electoral Adviser responsible for providing support on substantive matters to IFES offices worldwide.[ citation needed ]
On 17 November 2008, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark declared Peter Erben a Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog for his contribution to furthering democracy around the world.
On 29 November 2005, Peter Erben was awarded the Ghazi Mir Bacha Khan Medal [12] Superior State Medal for having directed the Afghan 2005 national elections. This order is the highest award the Afghan nations bestows upon a non-Afghanistan individual. It was presented to Peter Erben by Mohammed Zahir Shah, Father of the Afghan Nation and former King of Afghanistan, in his Palace in Kabul.
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the promotion of human rights, freedom of the press, and free and fair elections. It employs around 3,460 people, mostly in its field operations but also in its secretariat in Vienna, Austria, and its institutions. It has observer status at the United Nations.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan is a UN Special Political Mission tasked with assisting the people of Afghanistan.
The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is an international, non-profit organisation founded in 1987. Based in Arlington, Virginia, United States, the organization assists and supports elections and electoral stakeholders. Since 1987, IFES has worked in 145 countries and has programs in more than 50 countries throughout Asia-Pacific, Africa, Eurasia, the Middle East, and North Africa, and the Americas.
Parliamentary elections to the Assembly of Kosovo have been held four times since 1999 with the latest in December 2010. The Assembly was an institution within the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG) established by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) to provide 'provisional, democratic self-government' in advance of a decision on the final status of Kosovo. Kosovo, formerly a province of Serbia, came under UN administration in 1999 and unilaterally declared its independence in February 2008. The Assembly elected in 2007 continued in office after the declaration of independence.
Election monitoring involves the observation of an election by one or more independent parties, typically from another country or from a non-governmental organization (NGO). The monitoring parties aim primarily to assess the conduct of an election process on the basis of national legislation and of international election standards. There are national and international election observers. Monitors do not directly prevent electoral fraud, but rather record and report instances of suspicious practices. Election observation increasingly looks at the entire electoral process over a long period of time, rather than at election-day proceedings only. The legitimacy of an election can be affected by the criticism of monitors, unless they are themselves seen as biased. A notable individual is often appointed honorary leader of a monitoring organization in an effort to enhance legitimacy of the monitoring process.
Ján Kubiš is a Slovak diplomat. He is a former minister of foreign affairs. He was appointed United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon in 2019 by António Guterres, the United Nations Secretary-General, and as head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya in January 2021.
During the War in Afghanistan, according to the Costs of War Project the war killed 176,000 people in Afghanistan: 46,319 civilians, 69,095 military and police and at least 52,893 opposition fighters. However, the death toll is possibly higher due to unaccounted deaths by "disease, loss of access to food, water, infrastructure, and/or other indirect consequences of the war." According to the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, the conflict killed 212,191 people. The Cost of War project estimated in 2015 that the number who have died through indirect causes related to the war may be as high as 360,000 additional people based on a ratio of indirect to direct deaths in contemporary conflicts.
A special representative of the Secretary-General is a highly respected expert who has been appointed by the Secretary-General of the United Nations to represent them in meetings with heads of state on critical human rights issues. The representatives can carry out country visits to investigate alleged violations of human rights and act as negotiators on behalf of the United Nations.
Douglas Young FRSA TD DL WS, also known as Doug Young, is a former Scottish solicitor and reserve British Army officer.
Kai Aage Eide is a Norwegian diplomat and writer. He was appointed the United Nations Special Representative to Afghanistan and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on 7 March 2008, a position he held until March 2010 when Staffan de Mistura took over.
Egon Ramms is a retired German general who held numerous international commands. Ramms is a father of two.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1471, adopted unanimously on 28 March 2003, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in Afghanistan, the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for an additional period of twelve months until 28 March 2004.
United Nations Security Council resolution 1536, adopted unanimously on 26 March 2004, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in Afghanistan, particularly Resolution 1471 (2003), the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for an additional period of twelve months until 26 March 2005.
The United Nations Police (UNPOL) is an integral part of the United Nations peace operations. Currently, about 11530 UN Police officers from over 90 countries are deployed in 11 UN peacekeeping operations and 6 Special Political Missions. The "mission of the UN Police is to enhance international peace and security by supporting Member States in conflict, post-conflict and other crisis situations to realise effective, efficient, representative, responsive and accountable police services that serve and protect the population".
United Nations Security Council resolution 1589, adopted unanimously on 24 March 2005, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in Afghanistan, particularly Resolution 1536 (2004), the council extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for an additional period of twelve months until 24 March 2006.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1662, adopted unanimously on March 23, 2006, after reaffirming all resolutions on the situation in Afghanistan, including resolutions 1589 (2005) and 1659 (2006), the Council extended the mandate of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for an additional period of twelve months.
The United Nations Special Service Medal (UNSSM) is presented to personnel with 90 days of service with a United Nations mission not covered by a specific United Nations Medal. United Nations Headquarters service is not eligible.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1806 was unanimously adopted on 20 March 2008.
Carina Perelli is an international expert in elections, constitutional arrangements, governance, security and defense related matters. She was executive vice-president of IFES and also the former director of UN Electoral Assistance Division between 1998 and 2005.
The Ghazi Mir Bacha Khan Medal is both a civilian and a military award, designated a High State Medal, in Afghanistan. The medal is named in honor of Ghazi Mir Bacha Khan, a ethnic Tajik from Mir Bacha Khan district, on the Shamali Plain, located to the north of Kabul city. The district was named for Mir Bacha Khan and people called him “Ghazi Mir Bacha Khan Kohdamani”. He a hero of the Second Anglo-Afghan War, 1878-80. The award is a tribute to Ghazi Mir Bacha Khan's legacy and his lifelong commitment to non-violent resistance and social justice.
