OSCE Mission to Montenegro partners with Association of Youth with Disabilities to raise awareness on voting rights for people with disabilities

Working with the Association of Youth with Disabilities, the OSCE Mission to Montenegro launched a campaign to inform over 1,000 persons people deprived of their legal right to vote in elections.

The campaign includes two video spots, broadcasting on national and local television channels in advance of the municipal elections on 23 October.

Dominique Waag, Head of Mission, noted that OSCE participating States are committed to protect the human rights of persons with disabilities and to promote their participation in decision-making processes, including elections. “It is vital to ensure the participation of persons with disabilities in political, public and social life,” said Ambassador Waag.

Marina Vujačić, executive director of the Association of Youth with Disabilities, said that persons with disabilities, who are legally incapacitated, often are not aware that they have the right to vote in elections. “For this reason, we developed a campaign to inform them as well as all actors in the electoral process that people with disabilities have the right to vote independently in elections. Election management bodies must ensure everyone can vote, and political parties should affirm the voices of people with disabilities in elections and ensure their participation,” said Vujačić.

This campaign is part of Mission’s activities to strengthen the institutional capacity of the State Election Commission. The Commission recently amended its secondary legislation to ensure that people with disabilities can vote independently and in secret.

Video spot 1 - Facebook

Video spot 2 – Facebook.