II ~I ~ ~II~ ~~ ~II ~ ~II - IFES

IX. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONSCivic EducationThe need for a comprehensive civic education program on democracy in Burundi is referred to )in several areas of this report. This program should cover the specifics of election procedures,the rights of the voters, and the duties of election officials. It is also important that it be made Iclear to the electorate how a democratic government functions. One of the concepts which theIFES team found to be most misunderstood was the sharing of power in a democracy. Therehas to be a clear understanding by the ruling government that "power is not forever." If onewins an election, it is normally for five years. One must be prepared to return to the electorateto be re-elected, or face the possibility of losing. The concept of being a member of theopposition groups is certainly misunderstood by politicians. The IFES team is of the opinionthat through a civic education program on the realities of democracy in Burundi, the populationwill understand the implications of. the Constitution and the Charter of National Unity.Consequently, their understanding of the significance of democracy and the electoral processunder a new political system would improve as well.The population must be informed about the importance of their vote, with the goal ofconvincing all citizens that while voting is voluntary it is also a civic duty. Burundians mustalso receive assurance that their vote will be secret. The only way they will believe this isthrough an effective media campaign. Ideally, this campaign would have the involvement andapproval of respected non-partisan organizations and civil associations. The population musthave the opportunity to share ideas and to reflect on the meaning of democracy as well as thepros and cons of the various parties and candidates. Civic organizations provide a criticalforum for this kind of reflection and debate. An organized civic education program canprovide information and materials, as well as other kinds of support, to such non-partisanorganizations. .'The literacy rate is low in Burundi, especially among women, and thus the print media havea limited impact. Graphics and other visuals could be employed in order to transmit simplemessages. Radio is also a popular medium in that it has country-wide reception and generallyKirundi is the language used.•The mechanics of voting must be known by the electorate well prior to entering the polling \41