Referendum, 21 May 2006
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Mission at a glance
- Head of Mission: Jorgen Grunnet (Denmark)
- 10 core staff in Podgorica
- 20 long-term observers requested
- 200 short-term observers requested
- Core team drawn from 7 OSCE participating States
Mission schedule
- 29 March: Mission opens
- 8-9 April: Briefing of long-term observers
- 10 April: Deployment of long-term observers
- 17 May: Arrival of short-term observers
- 21 May: Referendum day
- 22 May: Press conference
Following invitations to observe the 21 May referendum on state status, ODIHR deployed a referendum observation mission on 28 March.
Headed by Jørgen Grunnet of Denmark, the mission consisted of 29 experts and long-term observers based in Podgorica and six other regional centres covering all 21 municipalities in Montenegro.
For observation of referendum day, the mission joined efforts with observer delegations from the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, and the European Parliament. Altogether, some 365 short-term observers from 35 OSCE participating States were deployed.
According to the mission's final report: "The 21 May 2006 referendum on the state-status of the Republic of Montenegro provided its citizens with a genuine opportunity to determine the future course of Montenegro as an independent state. This was achieved through a referendum process that ensured this longstanding issue could be determined peacefully, with legitimacy and certainty. Overall, the referendum was conducted in line with OSCE and other international standards related to democratic electoral processes."