TIRASPOL - Representatives of the European Center for Geopolitical Analysis have called the model according to which presidential elections were held in the self-proclaimed republic of Transdniestria an example for all democratic countries.
"At every polling station that we visited we saw two observers from each candidate. This is a phenomenon that we cannot see in West European countries. We also noted the positive practice of using transparent ballot boxes. Similar boxes are used in election processes in Europe. In one of the booths we saw a ballot when nobody was inside. But that is a minor irregularity. There was also a more serious problem. All canvassing is banned on election day and we saw how some people were trying to remove posters of [presidential candidates Dmitry] Soin and [Igor] Smirnov on the road to the northern districts of Transdniestrian. But then we saw many posters and other advertisements with pictures of [parliament speaker Anatoly] Kaminski. And we saw that in more than one town," Austrian monitor Luc Michel told Interfax.
He said the observers recorded mainly minor irregularities not influencing the outcome of the voting but noted the presence of canvassing materials on voting day, which does not conform to European practice.
The group of European observes included MPs from Hungary, Germany and Austria, journalists and political analysts.
They represented various political forces but their opinions about the election in Transdniestria coincided.
