Election Investigations Guidebook to inform the relevant parties of their findings. Regardless of the outcome of the investigation, complainants have “the right to be promptly and officially informed of the decision taken.”238 The decision of the South African Electoral Court in Mvelase and Another v. Electoral Commission and Others illustrates the importance of informing parties of investigative findings.239 In that case, the petitioners—two political parties—contested the results of a by-election. In response to one party’s application for the invalidation of election results, the Electoral Commission sent a short letter indicating that it had “decided to proceed with the investigation of the incidents complained of.” The “cryptic” letter “lured the appellants… into thinking the decision was outstanding pending investigation.” When the petitioners failed to hear back from the Electoral Commission, they appealed to the Electoral Court, only to discover that the time limit for the appeal had already passed. Simply by ceasing all communication, the Electoral Commission argued, it indicated that it had decided to discontinue the investigation and reject the complaint. The Electoral Court disagreed: “The long delay and the failure to make a decision and to communicate the result in clear terms to the appellants,” the Court concluded, “frustrated…the processes open to the appellants.”240 Record-Keeping and Document Retention International investigative standards repeatedly emphasize the importance of record-keeping and document retention and management. Investigative bodies have the responsibility to “develop standardized procedures for the recording of information during investigations”241 and to “maintain and keep secure an adequate record of the investigation and the information collected.”242 This section considers each of these issues in turn. Accurate Record-Keeping Investigators must keep accurate written records throughout the entire in- 238 Conf. on Sec. & Co-operation in Eur. (CSCE), Concluding Document of Vienna: The Third Follow-Up Meeting ¶ 13.9 (Jan. 19, 1989). 239 Myelase and Another v. Electoral Commission and Others 2009 (1) ZAEC 2 (Jan. 1, 2009) (S. Afr.). 240 Id. 241 Human Rights Standards and Practice for the Police, supra note 111. 242 Uniform Guidelines 2009, supra note 25, ¶ 20. 82