OSCE/ODIHR opens observation mission for Serbian parliamentary elections

BELGRADE/WARSAW, 22 December 2006 - The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today opened an election observation mission that will monitor the 21 January parliamentary elections in Serbia.

The mission will assess the degree to which the elections comply with principles for democratic elections, including commitments agreed to by all 56 OSCE participating States, as well as with national legislation. Observers will monitor campaign activities, the work of the election administration and relevant governmental bodies, election-related legislation and its implementation, the media environment, and the resolution of election-related disputes.

The ODIHR mission is led by Ambassador Geert Ahrens. Ten international staff from six OSCE participating States make up the mission's core team in the capital Belgrade. The mission will also include 16 long-term observers who will be deployed in teams of two throughout the country on 29 December.

"We recognize the unique significance of these parliamentary elections in Serbia, which will be the first since the dissolution of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro," said Ambassador Ahrens. "While we may be prepared to deploy some observers to monitor voting in Kosovo, our election observation mandate does not include commenting on any issue related to the possible future status of Kosovo."

The ODIHR has requested that a further 100 short-term observers be provided by participating States in order to monitor the opening and closing of polling stations on election day, voting, the vote count, and the tabulation of results. For observation of election day procedures, the mission will join efforts with delegations from the parliamentary assemblies of the OSCE, the Council of Europe, and NATO.

The OSCE Chairman-in-Office may designate a senior political figure from the Organization's Parliamentary Assembly as a special co-ordinator to lead the short-term observer mission. In that case, the special co-ordinator will deliver the mission's statement of preliminary findings and conclusions in conjunction with other officials, including the head of the ODIHR mission, at a press conference to be held the day after the elections.

The ODIHR has observed a number of elections in Serbia, including parliamentary elections in 1997, 2000, and 2003 and presidential elections in 1997, 2002, and 2004.