WASHINGTON, CMC – The Organization of American States (OAS) says its Secretary General Albert R. Ramdin has appointed former Ambassador of Guyana to the United States and the OAS, Riyad Insanally, to lead the Electoral Observation Mission (EOM) that the organization will deploy for the General Elections in St. Lucia, scheduled for December 1.
On Friday, the OAS said that Insanally served as Guyana’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States and Permanent Representative to the OAS from September 2016 to June 2021.
He was also Guyana’s non-resident Ambassador-Designate to Mexico.
A career diplomat for over 31 years, the OAS said Insanally specialized in multilateral diplomacy, regional integration, Latin America-Caribbean relations, and trade diplomacy.
He received Guyana’s third-highest award, the Cacique’s Crown of Honor, in 2019, for his “long and distinguished service in the field of diplomacy and international relations,” the OAS said.
The OAS said the EOM, comprising 14 specialists and observers, will analyze “key aspects of the electoral process, including electoral organization and technology, electoral justice, the political participation of women, and political-electoral financing.”
During its deployment, the OAS said the EOM will meet with government representatives, electoral authorities, candidates, and members of civil society and academia, among others, “to gather diverse perspectives on the ongoing electoral process.”
The OAS said this will be the fourth Electoral Mission it is deploying in St. Lucia. The previous deployments were held in 2006, 2011, and 2021.
On Thursday, the OAS and the Government of St. Lucia signed an agreement to deploy the EOM.
The OAS said the agreement was signed at its headquarters in Washington, D.C. by Ramdin and the Permanent Representative of St. Lucia to the OAS, Elizabeth Darius-Clarke.
Ambassador Darius-Clarke said the “decision of the government of St. Lucia to request an electoral observer mission reflects our confidence in our institutions and our belief that the scrutiny of a respected and independent body like the OAS strengthens public trust and reinforces our democratic traditions.”
She added that the “mission deployment builds upon that cooperation and demonstrates our shared conviction that democracy is best protected when its processes are open, transparent, and subject to principled observation.”
Ramdin said, “This collaboration reflects the commitment that St. Lucia continues to demonstrate to the Organization of American States.
“We appreciate very much the opportunity to witness the general elections in St. Lucia, which will be conducted, as always, with full independence and impartiality,” he said.
“As is customary in the Caribbean and certainly in St. Lucia, democracy is almost second nature,” Ramdin added.
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