OSCE Chairman-in-Office says referendum result demonstrates support for Ohrid Agreement

SOFIA, 8 November 2004 - The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Solomon Passy, congratulated all citizens of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia for the generally calm and orderly manner in which yesterday's referendum was conducted.

The Chairman-in-Office believes that the responsible attitude that was shown during the referendum campaign and during voting, despite a few isolated incidents, confirms the growing democratic maturity of the society.

"The preliminary results indicate that the citizens have renewed their commitment to the full implementation of the Ohrid Framework Agreement. This is clearly a forward-looking step towards achieving the country's goals of Euro-Atlantic integration," Minister Passy said.

The Chairman-in-Office pledged the commitment of the OSCE to further support the efforts, both at national and local level, with regard to decentralization.