Western monitors say Albanian vote disappointing

TIRANA, Feb 19 (Reuters) International monitors today expressed disappointment with Albania's municipal elections and said the country had missed a chance to prove democratic credentials worthy of a place in the EU and NATO.

''For someone who, like me, has followed a number of elections in Albania, the one held yesterday was somewhat disappointing,'' Jorgen Grunnet, head of the OSCE-ODIHR Election Observation Mission told reporters.

''The elections represent a missed opportunity ... to live up fully to democratic elections.'' Grunnet's mission said the country's 2005 parliamentary elections had ''partially'' met international standards. Both the European Union and the United States had called on Albania to exceed those standards this time.

He said there was no doubt the voting was a democratic process in the sense it was a competitive contest, but added the political environment around both the preparation and the election campaign was marked by uncertainty and lack of trust.

''Albania continues to lack a reliable system for civil registration and identification and a uniform system of addresses,'' Grunnet said.

''And this caused once again disputes on the compilation of voter lists and identification of voters in polling stations.'' SHARP CONTRAST The downbeat assessment contrasted with that of Albanian Prime Minister Sasli Berisha who hailed yesterday's ballot as the most orderly in the country's 15-year post-communist history.

He said it should satisfy Western demands for greater political maturity.

''I am here to hail the first great victory of free and fair elections ... like never before in the history of pluralism,'' Berisha told reporters.

''This is the most precious gift for Albania because our country needed to distance itself from the extraordinarily undignified and primitive debate about elections.'' Irregularities, ranging from concerns over voting procedures, the quality of the ink used to make sure nobody voted twice, voter intimidation and other malpractices were reported on polling day, but there were no serious incidents.

Opposition Socialist Party spokeswoman Mimi Kodheli said government representatives were hampering the vote-counting today.

''We call on them not to damage the standards and the image of the country in these elections,'' Kodheli said.

The Greek Foreign Ministry complained of irregularities in voting in some Greek-minority areas in southern Albania, citing delays to the vote caused by local officials.

Berisha said he would accept the results. Preliminary unofficial figures showed the opposition Socialist Party ahead.

REUTERS AB HT2132