South Africa conducts biometric voter registration for prison inmates

Inmates being held at correctional facilities across South Africa will from today undergo biometric voter registration ahead of the country’s general elections.

According to a government announcement, the Electoral Commission (IEC) has been preparing for the exercise in collaboration with the Department of Correctional Services (DCS).

The enrollment drive is scheduled to take place between Tuesday, January 30 and Thursday, February 1.

In preparation for the registration exercise, the IEC says it has been liaising with family members of inmates at correctional centers to ensure that their national ID documents reach them. This is because inmates are not allowed to keep personal identification documents while in detention.

Per the government statement, the ID credentials to be delivered to detainees include the green-barcoded ID, Smartcard ID or the temporary identification certificate (TIC) to enable them enroll in the voter register.

Officials have also disclosed that correctional facilities will accept the credentials of inmates serving their term in distant locations and transfer them to the facilities where the individuals are held.

The IEC has urged all inmates who are already registered to update their details in the voter registry, and for unregistered ones to do so during the three-day registration window this week.

While inmates will be registered from January 30 to February 1, the last round voter registration for ordinary citizens will take place on February 3 and 4.

Inmates in correctional facilities in South Africa have participated in elections in the country since 1999. The country’s constitution says every citizen who meets requirements has the right to register and vote and those serving prison time are not excluded from the process.

The announcement that inmates will be registered this week comes at a time when the IEC is also encouraging citizens living abroad to enroll their names on the voter register. This call notwithstanding, the electoral agency has expressed fears that compatriots in war-affected countries like Israel, Ukraine and Sudan may be unable to vote during the election if things do not change, according to Sowetan Live.

South Africa is set hold legislative and presidential elections between May and August.

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Africa  |  biometrics  |  elections  |  prisons  |  South Africa  |  voter registration