The European Union assesses that the final report of the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on the elections in Serbia “confirms the concerns of the EU” and calls on Serbia to address reports of irregularities in elections transparently.
This was stated through a post made on behalf of the EU by its spokesperson, Peter Stano. This was the EU’s first reaction following the publication of the ODIHR report.
ODIHR monitored the elections held in Serbia last year, and observers in those elections also included members of the European Parliament.
Members of the European Parliament had also reported a series of irregularities in parliamentary, local, and presidential elections and through an urgent resolution had called for an international investigation into the irregularities.
“The final ODIHR report on the elections in Serbia confirms the concerns of the EU: the electoral process needs significant improvements and further reforms. Reports of irregularities must be investigated transparently, including those related to local elections,” said Stano.
“The EU welcomes the expression of readiness by the authorities in Serbia to work on implementing the recommendations. There is no time to waste on the eve of the upcoming elections in the country,” he added.
In the ODIHR report, published on February 28, it was stated that in Serbia’s extraordinary parliamentary elections “the decisive participation of the president [of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić] has dominated, which, together with the systematic advantages of the ruling party [Serbian Progressive Party], has created unequal conditions for participants in the electoral process”.
It was also stated that in the December 17 elections in Serbia, among other things, fundamental freedoms were generally respected, but there was harsh rhetoric during the electoral campaign, bias in state media reporting, and misuse of public resources. The report also notes that mechanisms to prevent voter intimidation and pressure were not sufficiently used.
