Statement of Foreign Minister Bushati after the OSCE / ODIHR final report on the local elections of 21 June 2015:

I would like to thank the OSCE / ODIHR mission on behalf of the Albanian Government for their cooperation and for monitoring the electoral process in Albania on 21 June 2015.

Albania showed its willingness to accomplish a free, fair and transparent electoral process under the watchful eye of international observers, who responded positively to the invitation of the Albanian government to monitor domestic elections.

The final report of the OSCE / ODIHR identifies progress in comparison with previous electoral processes in the country, but it identifies also the gaps that need to be addressed.

The report clearly highlights the commitment of the Albanian government, confirmed by the Prime Minister, to fully address these recommendations.

Albania organized a peaceful electoral process where, as the report says, the election day was quite normal, and the election campaign itself was characterized by a positive and peaceful electoral climate. The active participation of minorities, the promotion at all levels of gender equality, and education and information programs made these election more inclusive in addition to providing a space that allowed everyone to be represented.

Beyond the obvious positive steps made by Albania, identification of gaps that remain to be addressed is for us a guide in order to take the necessary steps with a view to strengthening the electoral process in Albania, along with the best practices and commitments of the OSCE / ODIHR.

We appreciate the methodology of the Report, which contains specific recommendations for specific cases. These recommendations will enable us to take action for election management institutions in Albania, political parties and other stakeholders involved in this process. In this context, we express the concrete commitment of the Albanian government to cooperate with all the actors of electoral institutions in Albania, for the improvement and consolidation of democracy, as well as to take the necessary legal steps that will enable further the improvement of the electoral process in Albania.

In addition, we welcome the representative of the OSCE / ODIHR in Tirana to discuss specifically how to translate recommendations in a clear action plan for all stakeholders involved in the electoral process.

The Albanian Government expresses its appreciation and gratitude to all those actors who contributed with their professionalism in the organization and smooth running of the electoral process, which marked a significant step forward for Albania.

I thank you for your participation, and should you have any questions I will be happy to answer them.

 

Mr. Bushati, according to the opposition, this one is the worst report of the last ten years.

First, here I am at the premises of the Council of Ministers. I am not at the headquarters of some political party.

Secondly, let me inform you, and through you the public opinion, that reports are submitted to the Albanian authorities, rather than to political parties. Perhaps, this is one detail that should be further clarified.

Thirdly, I am not surprised by the different reading of this report by various political actors. I can tell you clearly, and I might invite you to do a comparison of all reports of the OSCE / ODIHR in Albania. For instance, let’s compare it with the report on the elections of 2011, which speaks clearly about the breach of the game rules, and about a totally partisan CEC. While today, we are talking about a politicization of the electoral process because of politicized actors; about how the electoral process was administered in 2011, about the consequences brought by the inclusion of judiciary, and the pressure made to engineer the result. Today, we are in the conditions where we need to deal with deficiencies in terms of law enforcement by all the institutions involved and by all actors, in order to improve the integrity of the electoral process. I believe that all political actors, not just the Albanian government, should show their willingness to manage the coming elections better. Therefore, the Albanian government is committed to work not just with the ODIHR, with ODIHR experts, but with all political actors in order to consolidate this process.

I could refer to different sentences in the report, or to the fact that not just the election day, but the whole voting process in 93% of the polling stations has been assessed as a fair process. This is totally new compared to the assessments made by OSBE/ODIHR on previous elections where the majority of the counting stations would fail the counting process. While here, in this report we do not have such a classification, nor in terms of the electoral process, either in terms of the integrity of the counting process.

Of course, there are elements which need to be addressed both in terms of the functioning of the CEC, of the administration of the electoral process, of a better role of the media, perfection in terms of ethics in the electoral process and the separation between the state and the government. Whereas in other reports we had gruesome sentences regarding the absence of the dividing line between the state and government, in addition to the problems that are identified in this regard, this report points out for the first time the willingness of the government and of the Prime Minister, in regard to legalizations, to not repeat that practice and to move away from that practice.

As for the way the opposition reads this report, none of the electoral processes in the 61 municipalities across the country has been addressed as a complaint to the court by the opposition, who claims that the process was not reliable and that the results were manufactured or engineered.

 

In addition to what you said, this report has also highlighted the fact that the state deformed the vote, that votes were bought, or other deficiencies concerning especially the government’s will to organize the elections. Which will be the concrete steps of the government to address what has been defined as the politicization of the CEC? Will you take measures to change the way the CEC operates?

First, although I like the pink color, the color of the political party that I represent, I don’t agree with you that the reading of the Albanian government is pink, as long as the Albanian government acknowledges the progress highlighted in the report, and is ready to improve and consolidate further the election process based on the specific recommendations made in the ODHIS report. There was a specific request addressed to ODIHR experts by us in order to identify cases that can be considered as shortcomings in the electoral process. You referred to the part of the report which talks about mutual accusations regarding vote buying, and of course it makes a snapshot of the situation, of the political, context and media context on which an electoral process is developed. Obviously, I cannot help but mention the fact that there have been mutual accusations by all political parties during the election campaign on vote trade, or on the use of segments of public administration, where some mayors were running again.

The Albanian government is open to working with the ODIHR in this direction. I have received a letter from the Director of ODIHR, who expresses me the desire to come to Tirana to discuss in detail specific recommendations on how to translate them in a clear plan of measures. We are fully committed to cooperate not only with them but also with other political actors, with the parliamentary minorities, and above all to study all options that would enable the implementation of these recommendations.

How the CEC future will be, how the electoral administration will operate, all these are to be discussed.  For instance, according to the report, elections should not be managed anymore by commissioners appointed by political parties participating in this process. Is Albania ready to move in this direction? This doesn’t require only a good report on paper such as the report of the OSCE / ODIHR, or specific recommendations, but it requires a political will not simply by a political party, which is in this case the government.

Thank you!