US to monitor local elections

TIRANA, Feb. 23 – U.S. Ambassador Alexander A. Arvizu on Wednesday announced that the U.S. Embassy in Tirana will be allocating nearly $360,000 in election related assistance to civil society. The funds will be dedicated to the monitoring of Albanian local elections, which are scheduled for May 8, 2011.
The Ambassador noted the importance of exercising the right to vote “Ɣhe point is everyone has a vote and everyone’s vote counts just as much as everyone else’s and, for Albania to move forward, it is important to exercise your right to vote. It’s also important for thoseƷho represent different political points of view to give the Albanian voters a choice so that they can make a choice. These elections are about Albania’s future.”
That comes at a time when the opposition Socialists have yet to declare in practice if they are to take part at the vote or not. Though they always say they will not boycott it, in practice they have not send the names of their commissioners for the May 8 local polls.
The funding is coming from the Embassy’s Public Affairs Section (PAS) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which have earmarked funds to assist a “domestic observer coalition.” The coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) will be monitoring the entire elections process. The coalition will also provide voter education to the public.
“I want to wish you the very best in your work and I ask that you take your duties as election observers seriously and with integrity. Your work will be very important in helping to ensure that these elections are successful and that they represent the will of the Albanian people,” said the ambassador.
On Friday U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James Steinberg will visit Tirana in another move to convince the ever-squabbling politics to sit down and reach a dialogue and, very likely, also to push the opposition Sociaslits to take part at the May 8 polls.