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OSCE, EU support discussion on role of police during elections

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  • OSCE, EU support discussion on role of police during elections

    NEWS Press (English)
    April13, 2012 Friday

    OSCE, EU support discussion on role of police during Armenia's elections

    Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe OSCE



    The role and responsibilities of the police during the elections,
    including co-operation with electoral commissions, political parties,
    observers, as well as interaction with citizens were discussed today
    at a roundtable meeting in Yerevan.

    The event was organized at the initiative of the Armenian Police with
    the support from the OSCE Office in Yerevan and financial assistance
    from the European Union.

    The purpose of the workshop is to clarify the roles of various law
    enforcement agencies during all stages of the electoral process and
    their interaction with the election administration, as well as to
    inform all stakeholders, including political parties, electoral
    bodies, observers, media, international organizations and the public
    at large, about it.

    "The role of the police in helping ensure smooth conduct of the
    upcoming elections cannot be underestimated," said Lieutenant-General
    Vladimir Gasparyan, the Head of the Armenian Police. "The main goal of
    today's event is to present all the measures taken by the Police so
    far in the preparation for the elections, and to hear the
    participants' views and suggestions."

    Ambassador Andrey Sorokin, the Head of the OSCE Office in Yerevan,
    said: "I am pleased to see the continuous effort by law enforcement
    bodies to be predictable and transparent towards the public, and
    inform people about the way the police intends to address issues of
    public concern. Today's event is one in a series and we encourage
    representatives of the police, media outlets, political parties and
    civil society organizations present here today to widely publisize the
    conclusions of the presentations and discussions."

    "Transparency is essential to build the trust of society in the
    electoral process," said Onno Simons, First Counselor of the
    Delegation of the European Union to Armenia. "The police has an
    important role in this process, and we hope it will be used precisely
    for this - to help ensure transparency, and thereby assure voters of
    the significance of their vote."

    Participants discussed the activities of the newly established police
    structure responsible for electoral issues, as well as public's
    engagement in the correction of possible inaccuracies of voter lists,
    procedures to file police reports on violations and ways to respond
    quickly to them. Other topics included co-operation between electoral
    commissions and police units, providing information to the media,
    policing during the election day, organizing patrol services, ensuring
    public order and doing safety management.

    The workshop is part of a 1.7 million euro project on strengthening
    electoral processes in Armenia in line with international standards,
    implemented by the OSCE Office in Yerevan and financed by the EU.

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