Press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly

VIENNA, 24 February 2009 - The following is a press release issued by the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly today. The views expressed in this press release do not necessarily reflect those of the Chairmanship, nor of all OSCE participating States.

OSCE PA parliamentarians to lead three election observation missions

COPENHAGEN, 24 February 2009 - OSCE PA President Joao Soares today appointed the leaders of the Parliamentary Assembly's three election observation missions in late March and early April to the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Montenegro, and Moldova.

Danish parliamentarian Pia Christmas-Moeller will head the mission to FYROM on 22 March, Slovenian parliamentarian Roberto Battelli will head the mission to Montenegro on 29 March, while Greek parliamentarian Petros Efthymiou has been chosen to head the mission to Moldova on 5 April. All three are experienced election observers with over 30 missions between them in the last few years.

The OSCE PA observation mission to the parliamentary elections in Moldova will be a full mission with a high number of members of parliament participating, while the missions to the presidential elections in FYROM and to the parliamentary elections in Montenegro will be limited missions, each consisting of a smaller number of parliamentarians.

"I appreciate the willingness of these three parliamentarians to continue the Parliamentary Assembly's vital work in election observation since 1993," said President Soares upon announcing the appointments. "These elections are important in the continued democratic development of all three countries and it is my hope that they will be both free and fair."

Pia Christimas-Moeller, a Vice President in the OSCE PA, headed the Assembly's observation missions to the parliamentary elections in FYROM last spring; Roberto Battelli is the Assembly's Special Representative on Southeastern Europe; and Petros Efthymiou is Chairman of the Assembly's Second Committee