PALMER: ELECTION IN CHRISTMAS TIME "EXTREMELY UNUSUAL"

ZAGREB, Oct 22 (Hina) - To have an election in Christmas time is extremely unusual, the spokesman for the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Mission to Croatia, Peter Palmer, told reporters in Zagreb on Friday. #L# Palmer said setting the election date was the prerogative of the President of the State, however, to organise elections in Christmas time was unusual and unhelpful for any country which celebrated Christmas as one of the most important holidays. Although many activities come to a lull before Christmas, a team of OSCE monitors from the Warsaw-based Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights will arrive in Croatia to monitor the elections, he said. Asked whether monitoring would be difficult to carry out, Palmer said that international monitors were coming from different countries and that people willing to carry out monitoring in that period would be found. OSCE's concern regarding the election date is caused, however, by two important issues - the election law and voters' lists - the OSCE spokesman said. Palmer said the election law had still not been adopted and the OSCE wanted all voters' lists to be completed by the election date in order to make sure that everybody entitled to vote could go to the polls. There is a large number of Croatian citizens currently living in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and many of them still do not have Croatian documents, Palmer explained. (hina) jn rml