The Legal Framework

The relevant legal framework for the Parliamentary Elections includes:

• The Rwandan Constitution of 4 June 2003.
• The Organic law No 17/2003 of 7 July 2003 governing Presidential and Parliamentary Elections, which is modified and complemented by the Organic Law No 5/2007 of 23 January 2007.
• The Organic Law No 16/2003 of 27 June 2003 governing Political Organizations and Politicians which is modified and complemented by Organic Law No 19/2007 of 4 May 2007.
• The Law No 31/2005 of 24 December 2005 Relating to the Organization and Functioning of the National Electoral Commission.

These laws are detailed and complemented by numerous regulations and instructions which have been adopted by the National Election Commission (NEC).

Presidential decrees determine the date of the elections and the exact dates of the campaign period in accordance with Article 33 of the Electoral Law.

Relevant international human rights treaties which have been ratified by Rwanda and which provide for relevant international standards concerning elections include the following:

• The Convention on the Political Rights of Women (1952).
• The International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) (1965).
• The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) (1966).
• The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) (1979).
• The African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (Banjul Charter) (1981).
• The Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (2003).