YEREVAN, 4 May 2012 - Francois-Xavier de Donnea, special co-ordinator to lead the OSCE observation mission in Armenia, this morning opened a full day of briefings for more than 100 parliamentarians as they prepare to deploy across Armenia for Sunday's parliamentary elections.
Matteo Mecacci, leader of the OSCE short-term observer mission to the 6 May parliamentary and early presidential elections in Serbia, began similar briefings for MPs in Belgrade.
Earlier in the week, Mecacci visited south Serbia and Novi Pazar. He met with local authorities, representatives of the local election commission, presidential and parliamentary candidates, and leaders of the Albanian and Bosniak communities to discuss developments of the pre-electoral campaign in view of the parliamentary and presidential elections.
"I am encouraged to see that the representatives of political parties of minorities in south Serbia are actively participating in these parliamentary and presidential elections," Mecacci said. "I have called on all stakeholders in this campaign, which so far has been peaceful, to make sure that on voting day the atmosphere also remains calm."
The OSCE will assess the elections for their conformity with the OSCE commitments as stated in the 1990 Copenhagen Document, to which the country has subscribed. De Donnea and Mecacci will each deliver the post-election statements on behalf of the OSCE at news conferences on Monday.
