American Embassy reacted to the postponement of municipal elections in Kavaja city. Through a statement embassy expressed support for Rama’s decision to withdraw, but also supports the right of Albanians to protest.
But whom does the embassy actually support in this cautious situation in Albania?
Here is the full declaration of the embassy:
“The U.S. Embassy supports the Prime Minister’s call for postponement of the Kavaja municipal elections in order to maintain the focus of the government and the opposition on the dialogue process. We encourage the continuation and acceleration of the dialogue process as there is limited time remaining before the June 18 elections to resolve these issues through negotiation.
We support the rights of Albanians to peacefully protest and urge all sides to show restraint. We call on all parties not to engage in acts that could incite violence, particularly acts that affect citizens’ ability to participate in elections and exercise their right to vote. Violence has no place in the democratic process.”
Additionally, other ambassadors accredited in Tirana also supported Prime Minister’s decision to withdraw from the elections in Kavaja city. But at the same time call on the parties to avoid violence during pre-elections period and also the elections.
“The UK welcomes the decision to postpone the Kavaje municipal election. We continue to call on all political parties to engage constructively to ensure that the forthcoming elections are fully participatory. We restate our call to all members of all political parties to ensure that the run up to these elections, and the elections themselves, are free from violence.”-British ambassador stated.
Meanwhile the German ambassador in Tirana Sussane Schutz spoke about the postponement saying that this is a positive step towards the solution.
Prime Minister Rama decided yesterday to withdraw the Socialist Party candidature from the municipal elections in Kavaja city while highlighting that June 18 it’s a confirmed and non-negotiable date for the parliamentary elections.
