OSCE Mission in Kosovo emphasizes need for transparency in election campaigns

PRISHTINE/PRISTINA, 21 April 2008 - The OSCE Mission called today on political entities to be more transparent with their funds.

A report on the audit of political entity campaign financial disclosures for the 2007 elections, prepared by the Mission and presented today to Kosovo's Central Election Commission (CEC), highlights the need for all political entities to disclose their campaign spending and accurately name the sources of their income.

"The voters in a democratic system have the right to know how political entities finance their election campaigns. Transparency creates credibility. It is important that political entities follow the rules. The politicians are front figures and their fairness and credibility is a model for everyone," said Markku Laamanen, the acting head of the OSCE Mission.

The Political Party Registration Office of the OSCE is responsible for the registration and auditing of political parties. The office produced the report on campaign financial disclosures on behalf of the Central Elections Commission of Kosovo.

The report, available at www.cec-ko.org and at Report on political entity campaign financial disclosures for 2007 Kosovo elections, includes analysis of the campaign spending reported by the political entities. Nineteen political entities have not disclosed information for the campaign period of the municipal and central assembly elections.

The OSCE Political Party Registration Office will now file complaints to the Election Complaints and Appeals Commission (ECAC) on submission of incomplete or inaccurate financial reports or on violating electoral rules. The ECAC can impose fines up to 200,000 euros. If needed, the CEC or the ECAC can also pass larger violations to the public prosecutor.