Brussels, 25/05/2010 (Agence Europe) - Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, welcomes the peaceful conduct of the legislative elections in Ethiopia on Sunday, which resulted in a victory by the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), the party in power under Prime Minister Meles Zelawi.
In a statement on Tuesday 25 May, HR Ashton states: “The legislative elections in Ethiopia were an important moment in the democratic process in the country. I welcome the peaceful conduct of the elections and I congratulate the Ethiopian voters for showing their commitment to this process with a high turnout”. Thanking Thijs Berman MEP, who headed the EU electoral observation mission, and his team, Ashton says: “The European Union recognises the challenging environment in which these elections took place and calls upon all political actors in Ethiopia to seize the opportunity to address the problems encountered, to commit to further strengthening democracy in Ethiopia. The EU stands ready to work with Ethiopia to address these challenges and to further deepen our relations with the government and the peoples of Ethiopia”.
This statement comes at a time when the Ethiopian opposition and foreign NGOs denounce the fraud that is said to have impaired the elections. When asked about this, Michael Mann, a Commission spokesman, told the press that the “preliminary report on the EU electoral observation mission was very positive. On the day of the elections, everything ran peacefully. There was a massive flow of voters and compliance with voting secrecy”. He went on to add: “Irregularities were noted here and there but, on the whole, procedures were considered as good”. (A.N./transl.jl)