[ALBSA-Info] OSCE:Elections marked progess

[Kreshnik Bejko]

Albanian parliamentary elections mark progress towards international 
standards

TIRANA, 25 June 2001 (OSCE) -- Yesterday's parliamentary elections in 
Albania marked progress towards meeting international standards for 
democratic elections, concluded the International Election Observation 
Mission in a statement issued in Tirana today.

"This election represents another important step towards the consolidation 
of democracy in Albania", said Bruce George, Vice-president of the OSCE 
Parliamentary Assembly and Special Co-ordinator for these elections 
designated by the OSCE Chairman-in-Office.

"The Central Election Commission's professional and transparent conduct 
contributed significantly to the progress noted in these elections. Their 
distance from political party disputes was courageous", said Jerzy 
Smorawinski, Chairman of the delegation of the Council of Europe's 
Parliamentary Assembly.

"The media assumed an important role in this election campaign and a large 
spectrum of media gave voters the opportunity to make an informed choice", 
added Doris Pack, Head of the European Parliament delegation.

The campaign took place in a generally peaceful atmosphere. A total of 28 
parties took part and fielded some 2,000 candidates. The most contentious 
issue was the attempt to field party affiliates as independent candidates, 
aiming to increase the number of compensatory mandates allocated to parties. 
Other shortcomings observed include inaccuracies in the voter lists, and 
excessive deviations in the number of voters registered in some electoral 
constituencies.

Election day was largely peaceful, except for a handful of isolated violent 
incidents. The voting and counting process was relatively positive. However, 
despite the best effort of polling commissions in most areas, their lack of 
training and disorganization were evident on election day. Also, disputes 
among polling and zone commission members and other procedural difficulties 
will force reruns in one out of 100 constituencies and a limited number of 
polling centers in others. The voter turnout was reported around 60%.

"The final assessment on whether these elections will bring Albania closer 
to international standards depends on the tabulation of results for the 
first round, and the conduct of the second round on 8 July, as well as on 
the process of allocating the compensatory mandates and the role which the 
Central Election Commission and the courts play in this process", concluded 
Nikolai Vulchanov, Head of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission in 
Tirana.

Mission information:

The International Election Observation Mission is a joint undertaking of the 
OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE 
Parliamentary Assembly (PA), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of 
Europe and the European Parliament.

An OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission with 10 election experts in the 
Tirana headquarters and 18 long-term observers deployed to the regions was 
established in late May to assess the legal framework, the election 
administration, the media environment, and conditions for the election 
campaign. For election day, the International Election Observation Mission 
has deployed over 270 short-term observers from 30 countries, including 39 
from the OSCE PA, 17 from the Council of Europe's Parliamentary Assembly and 
7 from the European Parliament, from across the political spectrum. Also, 
the Organisation International de la Francophonie contributed 14 observers 
for election day. International observers monitored the voting and counting 
procedures in polling stations and election commissions across Albania.

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