Sign the Petition for More Overseas Voting Stations

The DA Abroad have called on all South Africans abroad to sign a petition calling for more voting stations to be made available.

Since the announcement that South African expats could register to vote, there has been both elation and disappointment.

The voting stations that have been assigned in countries have been few and VERY far between, with perhaps the most ridiculous being in Australia where the SA government has only designated Canberra as a foreign mission to accept registrations and votes. This means two long trips for most South Africans who live nowhere near Canberra. Many live in Perth, over 3,000 km away, or in Brisbane and Sydney.

It has been the same story in other countries around the world.

In the UK, everyone has to travel to London. There’s nowhere in Cyprus for all those South Africans. And in Canada the people in Vancouver have been left out. In New Zealand, all those in Auckland have to travel to Wellington. And so it goes on. An absurd situation, which we hope was not deliberate.

Hundreds of people have written in to SAPeople complaining and we have written several times to the ANC begging for more stations.

Today, the DA Abroad have set up a petition calling on the Department of International Relations and Co-operation (DIRCO) and the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to provide more reasonable access to voting stations where there are large diaspora of South Africans living in 2014.

You can sign the petition here.

“The success of this campaign depends on you. Once you’ve signed the petition please share with all your friends and family abroad. Our goal is 50 000 signatures in the next 25 days!” says the DA Abroad.

You will still need to register to vote in the meantime – so you may need to travel for that. All registrations must be completed before 7 February.