PRESS RELEASE CIVIL calls for maximally respecting the right to vote and the coronavirus protective measures

Ahead of the early parliamentary elections on July 15, CIVIL calls on all participants in the election process to maximally respect the good electoral practices, democratic standards and legal regulations and to contribute to free, fair and safe elections.

The right to vote is an inviolable human right and must be maximally respected!

We demand from the political parties to respect the Electoral Code, the Constitution and the laws of the Republic of North Macedonia, to comply to the protocols and coronavirus

protection measures, to respect the electoral silence and to stop any possible plans, if there are such, for election vote-buying, pressure and manipulations.

We demand from the parties, but also from parents to respect the rights of children and to leave them out of politics! Children and minors must not be abused for political purposes in any way, and must not be involved in the campaigns of political parties! For every abuse of children, we demand an appropriate legal reaction by the institutions, and we urge the public to strongly condemn and reject the abuse of children and minors.

Any attempt to breach the electoral silence and violate the laws and standards related to the electoral process have to be immediately stopped and sanctioned. There should be no tolerance for any kind of pressure, threat or corruption and vote-buying.

CIVIL urges and encourages the State Election Commission to maximally use all of its competencies and to conduct a lawful, free, fair and safe election process. The SEC’s competencies are high, and it is at the top of the election process. The SEC does not have to wait for complaints and appeals, rather it can act upon hearsay and according to its own findings and opinion. We expect for it to do so at these elections.

CIVIL calls on the members of the election boards to strictly adhere to the coronavirus protection measures, and to request this also from the voters, observers and media teams. The election boards are expected to show responsibility and to comply to the procedures and the Electoral Code, to be polite, professional and dignified in carrying out their tasks on election day. We encourage them not to succumb to possible pressure and corrupt actions of certain party structures. For any information they need, they should contact the Municipal Election Commission or the State Election Commission. They need to report any attempt for pressure against them to the police, while CIVIL is also at their disposal for reporting such cases. At the same time, all members of the election boards are expected to respect the integrity and work of the observers and journalist teams and under no circumstances hinder their work.

We call on the citizens to vote freely, according to their convictions. They owe no one anything. Everything they are promised by the parties and candidates at any elections, actually, belongs to them, according to the Constitution and the laws of the Republic of North Macedonia.

We call on all citizens who will not figure in the Voters Register, to report this to the authorities, but also to CIVIL. It is enough for them to give us their name, last name and place of residence.

We call on the media to be unbiased and professional. Journalists in this period have a great social responsibility. We encourage them to be up to the task and to show maximum professionalism and moral responsibility.

We call on all citizens to report election irregularities of any kind. Pressures, threats, blackmail, corruption, vote-buying, abuse of public resources or official position, breach of electoral silence, unlawful work of the election administration, political agitation and propaganda, hate speech, fake news, problems with the Voters Register, namely, they can report to CIVIL anything citizens consider not to be in accordance to their understanding of free, fair and democratic elections. Reports can be submitted throughout the entire day, at the Free Elections website, by email ([email protected]), in a message on Facebook or by phone 02 / 5209 176.