A delegation of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly will arrive
in Tirana this Monday with the mission to evaluate the electoral
situation and campaign before the June 23rd elections.
During this 2-day visit they have planned meetings with the Prime Minister, the Parliament Speaker, the Interior Minister, the Albanian representatives at the Parliamentary Assembly, the Central Election Commission chairwoman, representatives of political parties that participate in elections; representatives from the civil society, the media and the diplomatic body in Tirana.
Besides the Socialists, the four other political groups at the Council of Europe are represented through this delegation. The right wing leads the mission with the Italian Luca Volonte. The liberal grouping is represented by the Romanian Alina Stefania Gorghiu.
The Conservatory group is represented by the British Jonathan Evans, rapporteur for Albania together with Grigore Petrenco, left extremist from Moldova. The fifth member comes from the same political family, Petros Tatsopuolos, from the Greek Communist Party.
The Council of Europe announces that a more complete delegation composed of 27 members will observe the voting process in the country before the final evaluation.
Prepared by: Arta Tozaj
Elections, EP sends 7 MPs in Albania
The European Parliament decided to send a delegation of seven Parliament Members for observing the June 23rd elections in Albania.
According to the right wing participant, Eduard Kukan, (the head of the delegation for Balkan), and the head of the left group, Libor Roucek, (head of the working group at the Euroepan Parliament for the region), this mission reflects the consensus between the main political groups in the European Parliament for the full support and the attention our country deserves during these elections.
In a joint declaration, Kukan and Roucek say that there are chances for Albania to receive the candidate status, but no political government or party can achieve it alone, underlining this way the significance of consensus and dialogue in Albania, with the example of passing the three Parliament laws.
“However, the elections will be the main political maturity test for Albania and for its commitment to the democracy values”, the European Parliament Members underline, adding that the responsibility falls on all political forces and the Albanian society, to guarantee a process in full accordance with the European standards, free and fair, with results accepted by everyone”.
“In this context we are concerned by the controversy that surrounds the composure of the Central Election Commission. The independence of the electoral administration, professional functionality, transparent and non-partisan, is the key of successful democratic electoral processes. All parties have the responsibility to guarantee trust in this process, otherwise it will be the Albanian citizens who will lose in these elections”, the declaration warns.
Kukan and Roucek remind that the right and left wings in the European parliament, despite their differences, are united in their support of Albania’s integrity, with the hope that the Albanian sister parties will show their ability for a similar long-termed perspective.
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