STATEMENT
OF
THE ALL POLITICAL PARTIES OF THE ALBANIAN
PARLIAMENTARY
OPPOSITION ON THE OCTOBER 1 LOCAL
ELECTIONS
All the political parties of the parliamentary opposition convened today on November 6th, 2000 on a full consensus concluded as follows :
Both the October 1 election and the run off election on October 15, 2000 were accompanied by a widespread fraud and illegality of free vote and as such they were neither free nor fair.
The Socialist Partv, the Government and the President, substitued the electoral law which was approved by 14 parlianentary parties with a new law in which no amendments proposed by the opposition was included. Through a full control on the Central Election Commission (CEC) and their direct engagement, they consciously imposed the violation of all democratic standards, which guarantee the free vote.
The Constitution which has been contested by the majority of the opposition was not only used to set up a CEC politically controlled by the SP but deliberately and flagrantly was violated in its article 45.
CEC, upon the order of SP and its government, openly violated the Electoral Code by allowing the use of illegal voters' lists; on political ground it disenfranchised some 660 000 Albanian voters by removal of their names from the lists, and included supporters of the ruling SP on the list of more than one polling location in order to allow them to vote more than once. Contrary to the law, this commission flagrantly has concealed and has not taken into consideration even the courts decisions which were in favor of the opposition candidates.
According to the statements made by two CEC members, Kokaj and Zguri the voters lists were neither examined nor approved by the CEC, as the Electoral Code requires. Also, the opposition was denied the right to run for comrnune chairman mayors and counselors in a considerable number of electoral zones.
During the electora] campaign have been observed intervention and violation exerted by the police, both against political leaders of the opposition and their activists. Representatives of the Government and state administration have exercised coercion on the opposition candidates threatening dismissal from their job.
On this ground and based on concrete facts of manipulations occurred during the election process, our political parties agreed :
- To demand the re-conduction of the elections in those communes and municipalities where verified degree of manipulation has altered the election outcome.
- To establish a joint working group of the opposition parties in order to compile the report on the electoral fraud. This Report, after being signed by the chairmen of the all parties shal1 be presented to a11 relevant international organizations and the diplomatic corps accredited in Tirana.
- Our opposition parties will continue to intensively cooperate with the relevant international factor, and in this framework we invite an international mission for an open and full investigation, allowing them to get acquainted with the complete file of facts that opposition possesses on the manipulation of the October 1-st and 15-th, 2000 elections.
- Institutionally and through democratic means, the opposition parties pledge to establish a governing political will that guarantees the protection of the free vote.
- Our parties express their full will to continue the cooperation among them in the future.