PRISTINA, Nov 16 (Hina) - Around 1.2 million people will go to the polls in Saturday's general vote in Kosovo to elect a new, 120-member parliament and the province's government and president. The election of the Kosovo parliament
will enable the transfer of one part of powers from the hands of the UN Civil Administration to the hands of elected deputies. UN Civil Administrator Hans Haekkerup was glad he had managed to persuade all communities to participate in the vote. The aim of the entire process is for Kosovo to make progress and that can be done only if Kosovo Serbs, too, participate in the establishment of the province's structures, Haekkerup said. The commander of the Kosovo Force (KFOR), French General Marcel Valentin, said 2,000 additional international peacekeepers and 5,000 UN and local police would be in charge of safety during the election. Ambassador Daan Everts, head of the Organisation for Security
PRISTINA, Nov 16 (Hina) - Around 1.2 million people will go to the
polls in Saturday's general vote in Kosovo to elect a new, 120-
member parliament and the province's government and president.
The election of the Kosovo parliament will enable the transfer of
one part of powers from the hands of the UN Civil Administration to
the hands of elected deputies.
UN Civil Administrator Hans Haekkerup was glad he had managed to
persuade all communities to participate in the vote. The aim of the
entire process is for Kosovo to make progress and that can be done
only if Kosovo Serbs, too, participate in the establishment of the
province's structures, Haekkerup said.
The commander of the Kosovo Force (KFOR), French General Marcel
Valentin, said 2,000 additional international peacekeepers and
5,000 UN and local police would be in charge of safety during the
election.
Ambassador Daan Everts, head of the Organisation for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Mission, which has organised the vote,
said the new Kosovo parliament would not be able to decide
independently about Kosovo's final status because that issue would
be settled at international talks.
The only Kosovo Serb political organisation to participate in the
vote is a broad coalition of 19 parties, called "Povratak"
(Return).
During an express election campaign, representatives of the
coalition said they expected to win 15-25 parliamentary seats.
Of the 1.2 million registered voters, there are 178,000 Serbs, who
will cast their ballots at 150 voting stations in Kosovo, 177 in
Serbia and 19 in Montenegro. At 7 am on Saturday, 1,660 polling
stations will be opened in Kosovo alone.
Participating in the vote are 1,281 candidates from 26 political
parties or coalitions, including independent candidates, with
women making up 28 percent. One hundred deputies are elected
directly and 20 seats are reserved for Serbs and representatives of
other non-Albanian national minorities.
According to the last census, conducted in 1991, non-Albanian and
non-Serb minorities - Bosniaks, Turks, Romany, Goranci and others -
make up eight percent of the Kosovo population. Bosniaks are the
largest non-Serb and non-Albanian community (3%), followed by the
Romany (2%) and Montenegrins (1%).
The aim of the coalition "Povratak" is stopping the process of
emigration of Serbs and other non-Albanians from Kosovo and
ensuring their full safety and freedom of movement, as well as
property restitution and the return of all refugees.
Ibrahim Rugova's Democratic Alliance is expected to win the most
votes in the election - more than 50% of the ethnic Albanian vote,
according to some estimates.
(hina) sb rml