Parliament adopted a law Thursday allowing "m-voting" from 2011, six years after a landmark election in which Estonians were able to vote via the Internet.
"The system that allows people to take part in elections using their mobile phones is completely safe," Liia Hanni, programme director at the Estonian e-Governance Academy Foundation, told AFP.
"It won't mean that you just need a mobile phone to vote or that you can vote sending a text message," she explained.
Under the plan, m-voters will only be allowed to use telephones provided with certified SIM cards which will enable the person's identity to be verified before they can access a confidential electronic voting system similar to that used for e-voting.
Estonia, a country of 1.3 million people, is one of the world's most wired nations, earning the nickname "E-Stonia".
Although several other countries have experimented with Internet voting -- Switzerland has used them in its frequent referendums for example -- Estonia was the first to allow it in a nationwide election.
A total 9,300 people cast Internet ballots in local government elections in 2005.
In 2007, Estonia became the first country to use online voting in parliamentary elections.
More than 30,000 people opted for the Internet, representing a tiny proportion around one million eligible voters, most of whom still preferred the traditional method of voting in person or by post.
To combat concerns about fraud -- and notably the abuse of multiple ballot options -- e-voters are required to obtain a special identity card and can only use computers adapted to read them.
Voters are allowed to override their electronic choice with a subsequent paper ballot.
---
Quelle/Source: France24, 11.12.2008
