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2008 Assessment

Yemen: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Yemen: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Political Financing
Indicators		Score
20	Are there regulations governing the financing of political parties?	43
21	Are there regulations governing the financing of individual political candidates?	17
22	Are the regulations governing the political financing of parties effective?	0
23	Are the regulations governing the political financing of individual candidates effective?	0
24	Can citizens access records related to the financing of political parties?	8
25	Can citizens access records related to the financing of individual candidates' campaigns?	0

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

Are there regulations governing the financing of political parties?

20a: In law, there are regulations governing private contributions to political parties.

Score:

YES

Comments: The law restricts foreign contributions to political parties.

References: Law No. 66, 1991, Political Parties and Political Organizations

20b: In law, there are limits on individual donations to political parties.

Score:

YES

Comments: Foreign donations are not allowed. Individual Yemenis may donate, and the law sets no limit.

References: Law for Political Parties No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 17

Peer Review Comments: Article 17 of Law for Political Parties states that the political party that gets donations from a Yemeni individual should inform the concerned authorities if the donation exceeded 100,000 riyals (US$400).

20c: In law, there are limits on corporate donations to political parties.

Score:

YES

Comments: No stipulations exist.

References: Law for Political Parties No. 66, 1991

Law of General Elections and Referenda Law

20d: In law, there are limits on total political party expenditures.

Score:

YES

Comments: No legal provisions exist in relevant law.

References: Political Parties and Organization Law

Law of Elections and Referenda

20e: In law, there are requirements for the disclosure of donations to political parties.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there are any requirements mandating the disclosure of financial contributions to political parties. NO: A NO score is earned if there are no requirements mandating the disclosure of contributions to political parties, existing regulations do not require a donor\'s name or amount given, or the regulations allow for anonymous donations.$

Comments: To make sure there are no violations of the law

References: Law for Political Parties No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 25

20f: In law, there are requirements for the independent auditing of the finances and expenditures of political parties.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there is a legal or regulatory requirement for the independent auditing of party finances and expenditures. The auditing is performed by an impartial third-party. NO: A NO score is earned if there are no legal or regulatory requirements for the independent auditing of political parties\' finances and expenditures or if such requirements exist but allow for parties to self-audit.$

Comments: No specific statute on audits exists. However, donations over 100,000 rials (US$500) should be reported.

References: Elections and Referenda Law

Political Parties and Organizations Law

20g: In law, there is an agency or entity that monitors the financing of political parties.

Score:

YES

Comments: Poltical Parties and Organizations Board

References: Political Parties and Organizations Law No 66, 1991, Article 18, Chaper IV

Are there regulations governing the financing of individual political candidates?

21a: In law, there are regulations governing private contributions to individual political candidates.

Score:

YES

Comments: Donors can direct funding from donations, advertisements, the government, subscriptions and, sometimes, indirect funding from investments.

References: Law No 66, 1991, Concerrning Political Parities and Organizations, Article 17

21b: In law, there are limits on individual donations to political candidates.

Score:

YES

Comments: No legal stipulations exist.

References: Law of Elections and Referendum 2001

Political Party Law 2001

21c: In law, there are limits on corporate donations to individual political candidates.

Score:

YES

Comments: No legal stipulations exist, except the prohibition on foreign funding.

References: Law No 13, 2001, General Elections and Referenda

Political Parties and Organizations Law No 66, 1991

21d: In law, there are requirements for the disclosure of donations to individual political candidates.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there are any requirements mandating the disclosure of financial contributions to individual political candidates. NO: A NO score is earned if there are no requirements mandating the disclosure of contributions to individual political candidates, existing regulations do not require a donor\'s name or amount given, or the regulations allow for anonymous donations.$

Comments: For individual candidates no legal provisions, except for foreign funding, exist.

Disclosure of Presidential candidates is not to the public but to the Supreme Committee for Elections and Referenda (SECR) only.

This was one recommendation presented for the reform of the Election and Referendum Law:

"Issue 15: Should the SCER have to make public the notifications it receives of donations to presidential candidates? Option 1: No change. Notifications to the SCER of donations received by presidential candidates are not disclosed publicly. Option 2: Require the SCER to publicly disclose the amount donated and the name of any person or organization that makes a single donation to a presidential candidate of 100,000 rials (US$500) or more or that makes donations to a presidential candidate that exceeds 200,000 rials (US$1,000) in total." From the Election Law.

There is currently no public disclosure.

References: Law 13, 2001, Elections and Referenda

Political Parties and Organizations Law No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 17

Election Law Reform in Yemen: Final Report in the Public Policy Dialogues, January 2004-January 2005

Peer Review Comments: Only candidates for presidential elections can get individual donations. Here, donations should be received through a banking account, and the candidate should submit a banking account of such donations to the Supreme Committee for Elections and Referendum, according to article 75 of the Elections and Referendum Law.

21e: In law, there are requirements for the independent auditing of the campaign finances of individual political candidates.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there is a legal or regulatory requirement for the independent auditing of an individual candidate\'s campaign finances and expenditures. The auditing is performed by an impartial third-party. NO: A NO score is earned if there are no legal or regulatory requirements for the independent auditing of an individual candidate\'s campaign finances and expenditures or if such requirements exist but allow for candidates to self-audit.$

Comments: No legal stipulations exist. A committee is designated for checking for any improprieties of funding (no foreign funding), but it is not an audit per se.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

21f: In law, there is an agency or entity that monitors the financing of individual political candidates' campaigns.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there is a domestic agency or set of domestic agencies/entities formally assigned to monitor and enforce laws and regulations around the financing of individual political candidates\' campaigns. A YES score is earned even if the agency/entity is ineffective in practice. NO: A NO score is earned if there is no such agency or entity.$

Comments: A committee is designated for checking for any improprieties of funding (no foreign funding) to political candidates.

The Committee for Parties and Political Organizations, once having approved the annual report of accounts, has the right to inspect the books and review the expenditures and revenues to determine their legality. The committee may assign a specialized team -- provided a copy of the team's report is given to the party -- or a political organization to do this job, provided complete secrecy is guaranteed except if a violation is discovered, in which case the matter is reverted to judicial authorities. From Article 25

The Supreme Committee for Elections and Referenda (SECR) also monitors donations for presidential candidates. However, there is no known monitoring of other election candidates.

References: Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18; Article 25

Peer Review Comments: There is no clear article in the law on the existence of an agency or entity to monitor the financing of candidates' campaigns.

Are the regulations governing the political financing of parties effective?

22a: In practice, the limits on individual donations to political parties are effective in regulating an individual's ability to financially support a political party.

Score:

100

One cannot help but quote the item pertaining to political donations: "Gifts and donations. The party or political organization may not accept donations from non-Yemeni individuals or parties (even if they acquired Yemeni nationality)." From law No. 66. Note that having passed the required number of years of acquired citizenship is not a factor in equal citizenship rights.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

22b: In practice, the limits on corporate donations to political parties are effective in regulating a company's ability to financially support a political party.

Score:

100

Efforts to find discussions of political donations did not produce any substantive material, even among the independent or opposition press.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

22c: In practice, the limits on total party expenditures are effective in regulating a political party's ability to fund campaigns or politically-related activities.

Score:

100

Law does not provide triggers for legal enforcement or avenues for dealing with irregularities, and, except for financial disclosure provisions, there are no limitations to speak of.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

22d: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring the financing of political parties independently initiates investigations.

Score:

100

No investigations for violations have been reported.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

22e: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring the financing of political parties imposes penalties on offenders.

Score:

100

The Political Parties Committee does not have any powers beyond a registration role for new political parties and a reporting role. No substantive reports have been made public by the committee, even of its routine activities.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

22f: In practice, contributions to political parties are audited.

Score:

100

Comments: There have been suggested reforms of donation rules (by foreign organizations), but they have not been implemented, nor has there been any serious effort to delve into the matter by either the opposition or the independent press. The reforms call for the institution of audit mechanisms. The Political Parties Committee does check for violations, and to date, no financial violations have been made public by the committee, if they exist.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

Are the regulations governing the political financing of individual candidates effective?

23a: In practice, the limits on individual donations to political candidates are effective in regulating an individual's ability to financially support a particular candidate.

Score:

100

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13 for 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

23b: In practice, the limits on corporate donations to individual candidates are effective in regulating a company's ability to financially support a candidate.

Score:

100

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

23c: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring the financing of individual candidates' campaigns independently initiates investigations.

Score:

100

$Scoring Criteria :: 100 Score Criteria: The agency or entity aggressively starts investigations into allegations of wrong doing with respect to the financing of individual candidates\' campaigns. The agency is fair in its application of this power. 50 Score Criteria: The agency or entity will start investigations, but often relies on external pressure to set priorities, or has limited effectiveness when investigating. The agency, thought limited in effectiveness, is still fair in its application of power. 0 Score Criteria: The agency or entity rarely investigates on its own, or the agency or entity is partisan in its application of this power.$

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

23d: In practice, when necessary, an agency or entity monitoring the financing of individual candidates' campaigns imposes penalties on offenders.

Score:

100

Comments: There have been suggested reforms of donation rules (by foreign organizations), but they have not been implemented, nor has there been any serious effort to delve into the matter by either the opposition or the independent press. We are not aware of any substantive action by the Political Parties Committee for such violations. There are doubts about the committee's ability to enforce any rulings or actions against violators.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

23e: In practice, the finances of individual candidates' campaigns are audited.

Score:

100

$Scoring Criteria :: 100 Score Criteria: The finances of individual candidates\' campaigns are regularly audited using generally accepted auditing practices. 50 Score Criteria: The finances of individual candidates\' campaigns are audited, but audits are limited in some way, such as using inadequate auditing standards, or the presence of exceptions to disclosed contributions. 0 Score Criteria: The finances of individual candidates\' campaigns are not audited, or the audits performed have no value in tracking contributions. Audits may be performed by entities known to be partisan or biased in their practices.$

Comments: There have been suggested reforms of donation rules (by foreign organizations), but they have not been implemented, nor has there been any serious effort to delve into the matter by either the opposition or the independent press. The Political Parties Committee's role is to check for violations, but there is doubt if that constitutes a real audit function.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

[ LINK ]

Can citizens access records related to the financing of political parties?

24a: In practice, political parties disclose data relating to financial support and expenditures within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments: Disclosure of revenues and expenditures is mainly made to the Political Parties Committee. In such cases, the committee can withhold government contributions to the party if it does not file its annual donations and expenditure report as the bylaws of the Law of Political Parties and Organizations stipulate. The reports, however, are not made public.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991

Executive Procedures (Bylaws) for Law of Political Parties and Organizations

24b: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of political parties within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

The article speaks of warnings being given to political parties that have not submitted their final accounts vis a vis contributions and donations.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

Bylaws for Law of Political Parties and Organizations

[ LINK ]

24c: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of political parties at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

Comments: No legal stipulation to make such information accessible to public exists.

Only the Committee of Political Parties and Organizations has access ot these records, and then only to contributions and expenditures.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

Can citizens access records related to the financing of individual candidates' campaigns?

25a: In practice, individual political candidates disclose data relating to financial support and expenditures within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no legal stipulation for this disclosure.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

25b: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of individual candidates (their campaign revenues and expenditures) within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no legal requirement to give citizens access. Party candidates fall under the requirement for political parties to disclose such information to the Political Parties Committee.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18

25c: In practice, citizens can access the financial records of individual candidates (their campaign revenues and expenditures) at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no legal requirement to give citizens access. Party candidates fall under the requirement for political parties to disclose such information to the Political Parties Committee.

References: Elections and Referenda Law No. 13, 2001

Law for Political Parties and Organizations No. 66, 1991, Chapter 4, Article 18