Sunday's parliamentary election in Croatia took place in a pluralistic environment and was administered in a professional and transparent manner, but further steps should be taken to improve the legislative framework, the head of the OSCE/OHIDR election observation mission, Geert-Hinrich Ahrens, said in Zagreb on Monday.
The limited election observation mission of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights released preliminary findings and conclusions on the Croatian parliamentary election in a report that was presented at a press conference by Ambassador Ahrens.
"Although improvements to the legal framework are still needed, and issues related to the voter list and relative constituency sizes should be addressed, the steps taken in relation to shortcomings identified by past missions have been positive," Ahrens said.
The report says that "the equality of voting rights is undermined by the current delimitation of constituencies. Although the law states that the number of registered voters in the 10 territorial constituencies should not differ by more than 5 per cent, the final voter lists indicate variations of up to 33 per cent." It adds that "the high number of registered voters relative to the 2011 preliminary census results raises concerns."
Ahrens cited positive steps forward in areas such as election campaign funding.
New campaign finance regulations enhanced the transparency and accountability of this process, but certain issues require further attention, such as pre-campaign expenditures, disclosure of commercial discounts and the efficacy of sanctions, according to the report.
Electoral contestants were able to conduct their activities freely in a campaign that was measured and focused on issues such as the economy and unemployment. The media provided voters with access to a plurality of views, Ahrens said.
"The media provided voters with access to a plurality of views. National broadcast media are obliged to provide airtime to all contestants on an equal basis. While designed to encourage a level playing field for contestants, media regulations often resulted in subdued coverage in the public media and limited coverage in the private media," the report says.
The State Election Commission performed its duties "in a professional and transparent manner", and the few complaints and appeals filed during the election were processed in a transparent and timely manner.
Voting on election day in the limited number of polling stations visited by the limited election observation mission was conducted in an orderly and transparent manner, Ahrens concluded.
