Ballot boxes arrive on time for Armenian election with help of OSCE

YEREVAN, 12 February 2003 - Some 2,000 transparent ballot boxes, ordered with the help of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, have arrived safely in Armenia for use in this year's presidential election.

At a brief press conference at the airport on Tuesday, the Head of the Office, Ambassador Roy Reeve, showed the boxes to the media before handing the consignment over to a representative from the Central Electoral Commission (CEC).

"Following an agreement between the Office and the Commission which was reached only last week, these transparent ballot boxes are now here in Armenia in time to be used during the presidential election of 19 February, as well as in the parliamentary elections due on 25 May", he said.

Distribution and transportation of the ballot boxes to all the territorial electoral commissions has been organized by the OSCE Office in co-operation with the CEC. The boxes are actually opaque white plastic cubes of a type which has been used during recent elections in Europe.

The importance of holding transparent and fair elections in Armenia was stressed by the Ambassadors of the US, Germany and Norway, also present at the handover ceremony. The process of holding democratic elections was much more important than the results, in their view.

Meeting the costs of production, delivery and transportation was made possible by financial contributions from the German and Norwegian Governments, the United States Agency for International Development and the Swiss Agency for Development and Co-operation.

The OSCE Office in Yerevan plans to continue to co-ordinate the efforts of the international community towards improving the election system in Armenia. Another step already undertaken is the verification and improvement of the lists of qualified electors.