THE OMBUDSMAN, MR. NASSER ZIEBERI, MET WITH MS. JULIAN STIRK, HEAD OF THE OSCE/ODIHR OBSERVER MISSION ON THE SUBJECT: PRESIDENTIAL AND PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS 2024 IN RSM

12.04.2024, SKOPJE

The Ombudsman, Mr. Nasser Ziberi, met with Ms. Gillian Stirk, head of the OSCE/ODIHR observation mission, on the topic: Presidential and Parliamentary Elections 2024 in the Republic of Macedonia, and where does the office of the Ombudsman have a role in the protection of voting rights.

Namely, the ombudsman informed Ms. Gillian Stirk about the establishment of the Institution and its competencies, with a special emphasis on the opportunities that citizens have, in the context of exercising the right to vote, during the electoral process and during the holding of the elections, to request the protection of their rights as voters.

He informed that for more than ten years, as an established practice, for every election process, the office of the Ombudsman has a free telephone line 0800 54321, on which citizens can report any violation of the right to vote, and which has been in operation since at the official launch of the campaign. He also emphasized that every citizen has the opportunity to protect the right to vote, in addition to this line, to apply in person at the central chancellery in Skopje, as well as at one of the six regional offices - Tetovo, Kichevo, Bitola, Strumica, Shtip and in Kumanovo, and that on the day of the elections, to protect the voting rights of the citizens, all offices of the Ombudsman will be on duty from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. The two interlocutors agreed that it is essential to conduct fair and democratic elections, as a reflection of the state's democracy.