Minorities stripped of election privilege

Ethnic minorities' parties submitting election tickets will in the future have to file 10,000 verified signatures. The Serbian Constitutional Court ruled Tuesday that the number of signatures must be the same for all participants. Minorities stripped of election privilege Previously, the ethnic minority lists had to submit 3,000 signatures to participate in elections. The court made the decision on the basis of an initiative launched by the Serb Radical Party (SRS) in parliament. This will halt the implementation of the previous decision by the Electoral Commission (RIK) according to which ethnic minorities need at least 3,000 voter signatures verified in court to submit an election ticket, Beta news agency said. The commission's decision applied to the previous general election, held on Jan. 21, 2007. The Vojvodina Hungarian parties said that the court ruling will not interfere with their campaign, as they have already gathered more than 10,000 signatures. The Hungarian Coalition, led by Istvan Pastor, says it worked in line with the Law on Elections, and hopes to submit its list by the end of the week. Bosniak parties in Sandzak were also not surprised by the decision. Sulejman Ugljanin's Bosniak List for European Sandzak says that the "law is, after all, the law, above any [RIK] decision, which can be overturned by the Constitutional Court at any moment". But the Valley Albanian leaders find the ruling surprising, Democratic Union of the Valley leader Skender Destani told Tanjug. Although several ethnic Albanian parties in the region are negotiating a joint election participation, Destani says that an agreement is unlikely. He explained that it is "almost impossible to gather 10,000 signatures in Presevo and Bujanovac", unless, in his words, "at least the majority of Albanian parties join the same ticket".

Minorities stripped of election privilege

Previously, the ethnic minority lists had to submit 3,000 signatures to participate in elections.

The court made the decision on the basis of an initiative launched by the Serb Radical Party (SRS) in parliament.

This will halt the implementation of the previous decision by the Electoral Commission (RIK) according to which ethnic minorities need at least 3,000 voter signatures verified in court to submit an election ticket, Beta news agency said.

The commission's decision applied to the previous general election, held on Jan. 21, 2007.

The Vojvodina Hungarian parties said that the court ruling will not interfere with their campaign, as they have already gathered more than 10,000 signatures.

The Hungarian Coalition, led by Ištvan Pastor, says it worked in line with the Law on Elections, and hopes to submit its list by the end of the week.

Bosniak parties in Sandžak were also not surprised by the decision. Sulejman Ugljanin's Bosniak List for European Sandžak says that the "law is, after all, the law, above any [RIK] decision, which can be overturned by the Constitutional Court at any moment".

But the Valley Albanian leaders find the ruling surprising, Democratic Union of the Valley leader Skender Destani told Tanjug.

Although several ethnic Albanian parties in the region are negotiating a joint election participation, Destani says that an agreement is unlikely.

He explained that it is "almost impossible to gather 10,000 signatures in Preševo and Bujanovac", unless, in his words, "at least the majority of Albanian parties join the same ticket".