5. Non-partisan election observation and monitoring by citizen organizations is impartial towards all political parties, candidates and those in favor of or opposed to any issue or initiative presented in a referendum. It is politically neutral and concerned with electoral outcomes only in determining the degree to which they are the result of a genuinely democratic process and are reported transparently, accurately and in a timely manner. 6. Non-partisan election observation and monitoring by citizen organizations seeks to work in cooperation with election management bodies, other governmental agencies and other electoral stakeholders and does not obstruct election processes or officials, electoral contestants or voters. Non-partisan citizen election observation and monitoring organizations should meet with electoral and other governmental authorities and other electoral stakeholders to seek, receive or provide information and to offer recommendations for improving electoral and political processes. 7. Non-partisan election observation and monitoring by citizen organizations is independent of government, including electoral authorities, and is conducted for the benefit of the people of a country in order to promote and safeguard the right of citizens to participate in government and public affairs directly or through freely chosen representatives elected in genuine democratic elections. 8. Non-partisan election observation and monitoring organizations should be transparent about their funding and must not accept funding from any source or upon any condition that creates a conflict of interest that would hinder the organization from conducting its monitoring activities in a nondiscriminatory, impartial, accurate and timely manner. No one should be allowed to be a non-partisan citizen election observer or monitor unless she or he is free from any political, economic or other conflicts of interest that would hinder that person from conducting her or his election observation and monitoring activities in a nondiscriminatory, impartial, accurate and timely manner. 9. Non-partisan election observation and monitoring by citizen organizations gathers systematically when practicable and always evaluates impartially information concerning all elements of an electoral process, including factors that may affect the overall electoral environment. This may be done through comprehensive non-partisan observation and monitoring by one citizen organization, a coalition of organizations or coordinated efforts of organizations, and it may be done through the efforts of several organizations operating more or less independently of each other, including those that choose to examine a particular process or element of the election cycle through specialized non-partisan monitoring techniques. In order to avoid confusion 6