OSCE Chairman-in-Office and Permanent Council issue joint declaration on elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina

VIENNA, 11 September 1997 - The Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE, Danish Foreign Minister Niels Helveg Petersen, and the Permanent Council of the OSCE, issued the following declaration today:

The Chairman-in-Office and the Permanent Council of the OSCE,

Recalling the Statement of the 2 September 1997 Ministerial Troika Meeting,

Appeal to the Parties to the General Framework Agreement for Peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina to respect fully their obligations concerning the conduct of the 13-14 September 1997 municipal elections;

Underline that these pivotally important elections will take place in a complex period of intensifying efforts to consolidate and advance the peace process as agreed at Dayton and recall the obligations of the Parties to ensure the right of all eligible citizens, irrespective of their ethnic origin or present domicile, to be able to vote in secret without fear and intimidation. This includes freedom of movement to and from the polling stations;

Call upon the Parties to respect fully the rules and regulations adopted by the Provisional Election Commission, to support the work of the OSCE Mission and its Election Supervisors and to co-operate with the international monitors. Above all, the OSCE wishes to enable the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina to decide for themselves whom they want to lead their municipal governments into the future.