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Monitors to boycott
Cambodian elections
Phnom Penh, 23 December 2008: Election monitors in Cambodia have announced that they would boycott local elections scheduled for May 2009. A spokesman for Comfrel (Committee for Free & Fair Elections in Cambodia) said the the use of indirect voting meant that the outcome of the elections was already fixed. The group, which has been monitoring the country’s elections since 1993, claimed that municipal and district elections used ‘indirect suffrage’, where only commune officials, of whom more than 97 per cent are affiliated to the governing party, can vote.

"We knew already that these voting members are representatives of their political party at commune level and they will vote for their own party. It's not a free choice," the Comfrel said. "We know with 100 percent certainty the result of this election without even organising a vote," it added.

A spokeman for Cambodia’s National Election Committee (NEC) responded to the threatened boycott by saying that it made no difference whether Comfrel participated or not. The reaction of opposition politicians was mixed. A spokesman for the Sam Rainsy Party told reporters that his party backed the group’s decision but that it would still participate in the elections.

A spokesman for the country’s ruling party (Cambodian People's Party) said legality was not an issue in the indirect election process as commune council members were elected by the people. "If we organise direct suffrage, we will spend more money and time and we don't want to spend money for nothing," he added.

Comfrel originated in the Task Force on Cambodia, with the purpose of providing an independent, non-partisan domestic monitoring team for the May 1993 UNTAC elections. In 1995 it was established as a permanent election monitor. In 1997 Comfrel registered with the Ministry of Interior and was recognized by the National Election Committee (NEC) as one of three official observers of the 1998 National Assembly election. It lobbies on election law, educates voters on their rights, and monitors and reports on electoral activities. Post elections, it monitors events, encourages citizens to participate in politics and provides education and public forums. (Report by Neth Pheaktra, Georgia Wilkins and Comfrel)

Government picks new
mayor of Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur, 16 December 2008: Malaysia’s government has appointed Datuk Ahmad Fuad Ismail, a high-ranking official in the country’s local government ministry, as Kuala Lumpur’s new mayor. Ahmad Fuad’s term of office will run until the end of 2010. A government spokesman said the new mayor had gained wide experience in local government matters during his 32 years of service in various government posts.

“With his wide experience in local government administration, the government is confident that Ahmad Fuad will be able to lead Kuala Lumpur City Hall to become a more responsive, sensitive, efficient and people-friendly local authority. This is in line with the government’s aspiration to improve the public service delivery system to make Kuala Lumpur an world-class city,” the government spokesman added.

Following Ahmad Fuad’s appointment as mayor of Kuala Lumpur, there has been speculation of a large-scale reshuffle at City Hall. Sources close to the new mayor said that he is considering a change of guard to improve the administration’s delivery of public services. However, Ahmad Fuad made is clear that he would first seek the views of Malaysia’s prime minister before considering his options.

Melbourne elects former
party leader as Lord Mayor
Melbourne, 2 November 2008: Melbourne has elected a centre-right politicians as its new Lord Mayor. Robert Doyle, a former leader of the Liberal Party in Victoria, will take over from the popular John So. So, who was awarded the World Mayor Prize in 2006, announced in October that he would not seek a third term. The election was contested by 11 candidates, including the former deputy Lord Mayor Peter McMullin. The final results showed Robert Doyle on 31,300 votes, with runner-up Councillor Catherine Ng on 26,600.

The Lord Mayor-elect left politics in 2006 in the run-up of state elections after it became clear that he could not win. Previously, in 2002, he led the state Liberal Party to a heavy electoral defeat. Melbourne’s new Deputy Lord Mayor will be Susan Riley.

Melbourne was one of 79 councils having elections in Victoria. Preliminary results showed that the Greens had made record gains across the state.

Tehran Mayor launches
campaign for presidency
Tehran, 26 November 2008: Following his announcement that he would be a candidate for Iran’s presidency, Tehran Mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf has set up campaign centres across Iran. The mayor, who is regarded as a moderate conservative, has indicated that he will make the economy the focus of his campaign. Qalibaf has been one the most outspoken critics of the country’s current President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who preceded Qalibaf as mayor of Tehran.

Mayor Qalibaf believes that the incumbent President has seriously neglected Iran’s economy. He has accused the President of squandering oil revenues when the price of a barrel was well above $100 and having no answers now it has fallen to $50. The Tehran Mayor also said in a recent TV interview while on a visit to Australia, that, if elected, he would seek to restore his county’s image on the international stage.

Presidential elections are scheduled for June 2009. In addition to the incumbent President, other likely contenders are Mehdi Karroubi, Secretary of the Iranian National Confidence Party, former president Mohammad Khatami and former prime minister Mir-Hossein Mousavi.

Tehran Mayor Qalibaf was shortlisted for the 2008 World Mayor Prize.

China to double
urban rail network
Shanghai, 10 November 2008: China plans to more than double it’s urban railway network by 2015. While urban rail transit routes grew from 43 to 750 kilometres between 1995 and 2008, transport authorities now plan to expand the country’s urban rail transit route to 1,700 kilometres by 2015, according to construction layouts of 15 cities, including Beijing and Shanghai. Urban rail transport would play an increasingly important role in public transportation in Chinese cities, said a government transport spokesman.

Fifteen major cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, have planned the construction of more than 60 urban rail lines recently, Liu Shijin, vice director of Development Research Center of the State Council, said at a forum on urbanization and rail transportation. Some 72 per cent of the scheduled new lines are subway projects, 10 per cent are light rail, and 8 per cent are other rail systems, said Liu, adding that the proportion of urban rail transit would grow further. “Urban rail transportation will be an effective way to solve the traffic congestion on roads of the large cities in China,” Liu added. (Report by China View)

Malaysia’s government
says no to local elections
Kuala Lumpur, 4 November 2008: Bernama, Malaysia’s national news agency reported that the government had no plans to re-introduce local government elections. The country’s local government and housing minister, Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan, said that elections did not offer a guarantee for better local government. “Efficiency is determined by a dynamic leadership, well-trained workforce as well as simplified and cost-effective work procedures,” he explained.

The minister added that first-class local government was also determined by sustainable town planning, standardised rules and regulations, efficient management of funds and resources as well as effective implementation of development projects.

Korean cities praised
for best public toilets
Seoul, 4 November 2008: The Korean cities of Seongbuk and Jinju, have won an international competition to find the best public toilets – or as one newspaper put it “they have flushed away the opposition”. In Seongbuk, which is part of the Korean capital of Seoul, local government has investid significant sums of money into rehabilitating and upgrading government-operated facilities and those in public institutions. The number of public toilets has grown from 129 in 2003 to 201 in 2008, for a population of about 460 000.

The number of users had almost doubled from 1.3 million to 2.4 million. At the same time Seongbuk had introduced measures to ensure safety in its facilities and to make them more accessible to disabled people, the elderly, children and foreign visitors.

Similarly, the judges praised efforts by Jinju authorities to provide more facilities and to upgrade existing ones. The number of toilets in the city had more than tripled to a total of 336 between 1995 and today. Jinju has a population of about 340 000. A program of custodian training and regular inspections ensured that the facilities were well maintained and hygienic.

A recent survey showed that among users of Jinju’s public toilets, more than 80 percent reported satisfaction with the state of the facilities. The mayors of Seongbuk and Jinju will receive the awards at the World Toilet Summit & Expo 2008, held in Macau (China) this month. (Report by abs-cbnNEWS)

Beijing deputy mayor
given death sentence
Beijing, 21 October 2008: Beijing's former vice mayor Liu Zhihua was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for taking bribes, Chinese media reported, citing a court ruling. Liu, 59, was charged with taking bribes of about 6.97 million yuan (1.02 million US dollars) when he was vice mayor of Beijing and director of the management committee of Zhongguancun Science Park from 1999 to 2006, according to Hengshui Intermediate People's Court in neighbouring Hebei Province.

The court said the bribes were pocketed by Liu and his mistress Wang Jianrui. Liu abused his power to get contract projects, loans and offer promotions for others in exchange for profits. Liu's lawyer Mo Shaoping said Liu had not decided whether to appeal or not.

Liu was removed from the post of Beijing vice mayor in June 2006 and expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) six months later. He had been head of the Beijing labor bureau, secretary of the CPC Committee of Xicheng District in Beijing and secretary general of Beijing municipal government. In 1999, he was elected vice mayor of the capital, a job that oversaw construction, real estate, sports and traffic projects around the city. (Report by Xinuah)

Observers praise conduct of
Bangladeshi local elections
Dhaka, 6 August 2008: In Bangladesh, local elections held in the country on 4 August are being described as an important first step in restoring democracy. These were the first elections in the country since an army-backed government cancelled national elections and imposed emergency rule last year. A day after conducting a largely peaceful vote in four cities, Election Commission officials said the polls have sent a positive message that future elections in the country will be free and fair. Independent election observers from home and overseas have also praised the conduct of the elections.

The elections were held to choose local representatives, and covered only a fraction of Bangladesh's electorate. But they have been closely watched, because they are seen as a test run for national elections which the army-backed government has promised to hold in December to restore democracy.

The head of the independent National Election Observation Council, Nazmul Ahsan Kalimullah, says the voting was "fair and credible." He says there was no sign of rigging, fraud or violence that has marred previous elections in the country. "Compared to past elections in Bangladesh, the regularity of events yesterday was promising for the anticipated December parliamentary elections, and it inspires confidence in the electoral road map and the electoral officials implementing it," he said.

The polls were conducted using a new digital voter list prepared recently after eliminating millions of fake names in the electoral rolls. Voter turnout was high despite long delays in some places due to confusion over the new identity system. Kalimullah of the National Election Observation Council says the state of emergency did not deter voters.

"We found from the very start, long queues, and those who received their national ID card [identity cards], proud owners of national ID cards for the first time in their lives, ventured out from their homes, and actually rushed to the polling stations," he said.   

Election officials say candidates linked to the Awami League party have swept the voting. The government had banned the direct involvement of political parties, but most candidates were backed by national parties. The political parties have been urging the interim government to lift emergency to enable the restoration of democracy. Bangladesh is due to hold another round of local polls by October. The Election Commission is then expected to announce a schedule for national elections. (Report by Anjana Pasricha, VoA)

China to strengthen local
democracy in urban areas
Beijing, 4 August 2008: The Chinese government has indicated that it wants to strengthen local democracy in urban areas. Wang Jinhua, a spokesman for the Ministry of Civil Affairs said that China planned to expand the number of local elections to neighbourhood committees in urban areas as part of a commitment to greater democracy. "Generally speaking the level of democracy is lagging behind in urban areas," Wang said.

Wang also told reporters that his ministry had an initial target of raising the proportion of direct elections to the committees to 50 per cent, but he did not provide a time scale. "Today, only 22 per cent of neighbourhood committees are directly elected and if we want to turn the other 78 per cent into direct elections there is a long way to go," Wang warned.

In rural areas, China allows direct elections to village committees and for village heads. "As for the rural areas, direct elections are already extensive enough," Wang explained. The government official added that Communist Party members occupied 56 per cent of the seats on village committees and 48 per cent of those on the urban committees.

Home values to fall in all
Australian state capitals
Sydney, 31 July 2008: According to Australian Property Monitors (APM) house prices in the country’s state capitals are set to fall by 10 per cent over the next year. The value of homes across Australia has already fallen to its lowest level since 2004. APM general manager Michael McNamara believes that due to rising interest rates worse is still to come. "But it's unlikely that Australians are going to see the same sort of widespread abandoning of the family home as it is happening in some parts of the US."

McNamara said that the implication of falling property prices was that those borrowers who took out 100 per cent loans or those borrowers that flew too close to the sun by taking out loans with very small deposits, may find themselves in a situation very soon where they are sitting on negative equity. "There is no doubt that the Australian market will see more foreclosures, repossessions and bankruptcies over the coming years,” McNamara warned.

Asian cities need help
with rapid expansion
Singapore, 26 June 2008: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) called on the world to help Asian cities cope with unprecedented growth. Over the next decade, a spokesman explained, the regions urban areas would be growing by more than 100,000 people a day. “Half of Asia's population will be living in cities by 2020, as some 1.1 billion people move to urban environments over the next 20 years,” added ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda.

"For most major cities in Asia, growth rates are too rapid for their own infrastructure to keep up with and the benefits of new investments and infrastructure have not been distributed equally," Kuroda told a conference on sustainable cities in Singapore.

According to Kuroda there was a $30 billion shortfall every year in the maintenance of urban infrastructure in the region, leading to greater deterioration of the existing infrastructure — already more than half a billion Asians currently lived in slums and air pollution was affecting the health of millions.

“By 2015, more than half of global greenhouse gas emissions will come from cities in Asia,” the ADB president added. Asia's cities needed assistance in coping with the physical impact of past and current urban growth. "They need increased investments in sustainable infrastructure, which will only come through more appropriate and relevant financing options."

A separate research study presented at the Singapore conference explained that as cities expanded, they should plan the development of suburbs in advance to avoid congestion and environmental problems, focussing on roads, utility networks and other infrastructure. “Many developing nations in Asia should limit car traffic, develop bus services and provide for pedestrians and cyclists, the study said. “Traffic congestion and greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced if automobile use is limited in combination with acceptable public transport alternatives,” the study’s authors point out.