Electoral reform/ODIHR seeks inclusiveness, but groups argue over representatives

2024-01-24 21:59:00, Aktualitet CNA

Electoral reform/ODIHR seeks inclusiveness, but groups argue over

The Assembly in Tirana announced the meeting of the special commission for the electoral reform on Friday morning, where it is foreseen to resume work with a calendar and an action plan and work calendar.

This is the second attempt to organize this meeting after the jamming of the hall caused last Friday by groups of opposition MPs, opposing their representation by the democratic co-president Enkelejd Alibeaj.

The OSCE/ODIHR mission called on all parties to commit to open and inclusive consultations in order to improve the electoral process.

In a public statement, the Mission emphasized that ODIHR has received an invitation from the Albanian parliament to support the national authorities and has provided support and technical expertise to advance the reform process.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) stated that the initiative of the Albanian authorities to resume electoral reform before the 2025 parliamentary elections is an important and positive development.

ODIHR Director Matteo Mecacci affirmed that he welcomed the decision of the Albanian authorities to renew their commitment to these reforms before the elections.

In the statement, the establishment of practical and realistically achievable objectives focused on the previous recommendations of the ODIHR, as well as the treatment of the shortcomings observed in the past elections in accordance with international standards, is considered to be of crucial importance.

"The main advantages are preventing the misuse of public resources and buying votes, ensuring the secrecy of the vote, protecting the freedom of the media and increasing the effectiveness of the election administration," the OSCE/ODIHR statement emphasized.

According to the latest report of the ODIHR, three recommendations of this Office after the 2019 local elections and the 2021 parliamentary elections have been fully implemented, another seven mainly and 16 partially implemented, while others still remain to be addressed.

But the Assembly's announcement of a meeting on Friday reignited the controversy between groups within the Democratic Party, who are suspicious of each other's involvement in the process.

The groups of deputies who support the former prime minister Sali Berisha and the chairman of the group Gazment Bardhi decided today to resend the names of their representatives to the Assembly as members of the bilateral commission, in an attempt to remove the co-chairman Alibeaj.

Mr. Bardhi declared after a meeting of the parliamentary group that after 22 months of deliberate blocking of the electoral reform, the commission cannot continue this farce of unilateral reform, and the development of these meetings as a facade will not be allowed.

"From May 2022, we have entrusted for a very long time to colleague Enkelejd Alibeaj to represent in the special electoral reform commission as co-leader, but that reform was not carried forward, no work was done, no product", said Mr. White.

He emphasized that the discussion should start where it was interrupted; to the removal that Prime Minister Rama did to the electoral coalitions.

But the chairman of the Democratic Party, Lulzim Basha, reacted through social networks, appreciating the position of the OSCE/ODIHR for the immediate start of work on the electoral reform.

"I call on all parties to stop playing political games for personal interests and to start comprehensive work to give the Albanians an electoral reform in accordance with their expectations and aspirations", emphasized Mr. Basha.

While the co-chairman of the bilateral electoral reform commission, Enkelejd Alibeaj, commented that the commission is not the place for political shows, and that the rules do not change every time a member of parliament changes his position.

He recalled the proposals of the Democratic Party for open lists, Albania an electoral zone, for the vote of the diaspora as well as electronic voting and counting.

"In the commission, every party and opposition flow is well represented, at the request of the Democratic Party. Everyone has the right and obligation to participate, to sit down, to work and make opposition proposals together", emphasized Mr. Alibeaj.

Socialists, for their part, have expressed their will to resume work with the electoral reform commission. A week ago, they could not sit in their chairs, which were blocked by right-wing deputies, emphasizing that they are ready to discuss when the opposition comes.

Adding to the tension of these events was a statement by Prime Minister Edi Rama, that if the opposition is absent from the reform commission, the majority can carry out the electoral reform itself based on the proposals of international observers./ VOA