February 6, 2005
Thai voters banned from using mobile phone cameras at polling booths
Thailand has banned voters from snapping photographs of their ballots using their mobile phones in a bid to stamp out vote buying at this weekend's polls, officials said Saturday, reports Channelnewsasia.
"Under the election law, voters must vote directly and secretly and if your ballot is photographed, then it will not be secret," Election Commission spokesman Major General Ekachai Varunprabha told AFP.
He said the commission realised new-generation mobile phones could be harnessed by voters wanting to collect money for casting their ballot at Sunday's elections.
"Since Friday we have been issuing orders to be posted at more than 83,000 polling stations warning voters not to use their mobile phones to take photos because voters could show that picture to canvassers for money," he said. "
This is interesting, because a previous article stated that election candidates were asking camera phone users to take photographs of their completed ballot papers as evidence of the party they voted for.
Related articles:
-- Hong Kong residents asked to photograph voting for pro-Beijing candidates
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