TIRANA, May 20 /ATA/ The Chairman of the Democratic Party, Sali Berisha, described the May 11 parliamentary elections as a sham.
In a media statement, Berisha said that the Copenhagen Document, the country’s Constitution, and the Electoral Code had been blatantly violated.
“In international laws, the Copenhagen Document for free elections, the Constitution of the country, and the Electoral Code require that an electoral process be conducted in accordance with the provisions of these laws and principles. Otherwise, it is not an electoral process but an electoral farce. In these elections, the most fundamental principles of fair elections were violated, principles for which Albania has signed the Copenhagen Document,” emphasized Berisha.
Berisha stated that “what occurred on May 11, along with the entire period leading up to the elections, represents a total reversal of the most fundamental principles of free elections, which demand that voters are able to freely express their views on the representatives they elect.”
“It has now become clear that the control over the will of the voters was all-encompassing, multifaceted, and widespread throughout the country,” stated Berisha.
Berisha highlighted that “in these elections and in this country, another core principle of a democratic system was breached—the principle that distinguishes a rule-of-law state from a party-state. And this occurred in thousands upon thousands of instances.”
Berisha added that when you compete against a state-backed party, these are no longer elections; they are an electoral farce.
Berisha stated that the electoral process is “null and void” because there is no real competition. He described it as fictitious, with the state, armed with billions in resources, unlimited logistics, and coercive power, facing political forces with no means to protect themselves against this unjust system.
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