Kosovo Election Forum marks new stage in handover of responsibilities

The start of activities by the Forum on 22 August marks a new stage in the handover of responsibilities from the UN Interim Administration in Kosovo to the local authorities.

The Forum was set up by the Central Election Commission (CEC) to review the legal framework for future elections. The October 2006 municipal elections will be the first to be fully administered by the Kosovo authorities since the 1999 conflict.

The OSCE Mission has so far successfully organized four elections in Kosovo - municipal elections in 2000 and 2002, and central government elections in 2001 and 2004. It also drafted the legal framework that governed them.

Helping local bodies function independently

The CEC and its Secretariat are the two local bodies responsible for organizing elections. The Mission helped establish them both in 2003 and has worked to build their capacity to function independently ever since.

"Our goal is not to run the elections but to create local bodies that will do the job in future. We want to hand over responsibilities and assume a purely advisory role," said the Head of Mission, Ambassador Werner Wnendt, who also chairs the CEC.

Responsibility for the most recent elections in Kosovo - the central administration elections in October 2004 - was shared between the Mission and the CEC.

The Mission handled activities relating to creation of the voter register, out-of-Kosovo voting and the counting and results centre, while the CEC took on all the other operational responsibilities, such as certification of political entities, election observation, public information and so on.

The start of work by the Forum not only marked the opening of a new chapter, but also attracted significant media attention, including from one of the leading daily newspapers in Kosovo, Koha Ditore.

"The purpose of the Forum is to discuss the current electoral legislative framework and formulate recommendations to the CEC until March 2006," noted the paper.

"The Election Forum is the only body that will deal with possible changes in the election system. It will make its proposals in due time before the municipal elections," it added.

The Forum is comprised of 15 members: nine domestic representatives from the CEC, one from ORA (a citizens' initiative with seven seats in the Kosovo Assembly that has just registered as a political party), one from the Ministry of Local Governance and four from civil society.

Challenges ahead for the Forum

The Forum is facing a number of challenges, including:

• the introduction of an open list system whereby voters would vote for candidates rather than for political parties;
• direct election of municipal mayors; and
• securing equitable gender representation on ballots and representation in elected and appointed bodies.

The recommendations made by the Forum will be used by the CEC in defining the future shape of Kosovo's electoral system.

With the deadline set for March 2006, the next six months will be very busy for the Forum members. During that period, the OSCE Mission will provide the necessary advice to strengthen the ability of the local institutions to take on their duties in administering Kosovo.

The Mission plays a leading role in democratization and institution-building in Kosovo - the third of the four operational 'pillars' of the UN Interim Administration.