Algeria invites observers for 2012 vote

Algiers – Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika on Sunday invited international observers to monitor a spring 2012 legislative vote he promised would be the country's most open ever.

At a Cabinet meeting, Bouteflika tasked the government with inviting foreign organisations “to massively deploy their observers for the next legislative election”, a statement said.

The statement cited the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, the African Union but also the United Nations and the European Union, which has never monitored polls in Algeria.

“I look forward to the upcoming legislative election which will be held amid unprecedented plurality,” the president said.

Bouteflika defended his programme last week and said his government was acting responsibly in “promoting a climate conducive to political reform”.