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disability, age, political or other opinion, religion or belief, birth or economic, social or other
status such as belonging to a minority:
(a) to take part in the conduct of public affairs, directly or through freely chosen
representatives;
(b) to vote and to be elected at genuine periodic elections which shall be by universal and
equal adult suffrage and shall be held by secret ballot, guaranteeing the free expression of
the will of the electorate;
(c) to freely receive and impart election-related information, and carry out campaigning,
without discrimination, including in her or his own language.
Article 27
1. States Parties undertake to draw geographic boundaries of electoral districts to facilitate the
equitable representation of national or ethnic, religious or belief and linguistic minorities.
2. States Parties undertake to adopt legislation to prevent and prohibit the drawing or
manipulation of electoral district lines in a manner that discriminatorily excludes or reduces
representation of minorities.
3. States Parties undertake to eliminate electoral policies or requirements such as voter
registration or documentation which make it unreasonably or disproportionately harder for
persons belonging to minorities to vote or be elected, in application of the right to equality
without discrimination.
4. States Parties undertake not to impose disproportionate or discriminatory language, religious
or nationality requirements as a precondition for running as a candidate or occupying an elected
position.
5. State Parties undertake to establish institutional mechanisms including those that facilitate the
representation of all minorities in decision-making structures, as the situation warrants, such as
quotas, or special majorities of minority representatives with respect to decisions that
particularly affect the minorities concerned.
Part V
Article 28
States Parties shall ensure that minorities have an equal opportunity to participate in decisionmaking regarding social and economic policies, especially those that affect them. The
participation of minorities shall substantially inform the design and outcome of such policies.
Article 29
Minorities shall exercise the right, individually and collectively, to the protection and
exploitation of the resources found on their land and shall exercise the right to freely dispose of
or utilise their natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of
the interest of the larger society, based upon the principle of mutual benefit, and international
law.