Baraliu: Electoral reform is necessary

Although more than a decade has passed since it was assessed that Kosovo needed to reform the electoral system, despite several attempts, nothing concrete has been done. Professor of constitutional law Mazllum Baraliu says that the reform is necessary and that it should be completed as soon as possible, Zeri reports.

Baraliu believes that the electoral reform should be carried out as soon as possible, adding that the electoral reform was a "sea" of issues that had to be resolved, starting with the laws that had been in force since the time of UNMIK until the electoral census.

"Electoral legislation, the electoral system, and the electoral process must be changed. I believe that it should be changed from the electoral census to the electoral zones. Until now, there has been no interest and will of the political parties. That is why the process has stopped. This time, let's see what will happen with this by the commission they formed in the parliament. But, if there is a will, reform is necessary," Baraliu said.

The organizing secretary of the Self-Determination Movement, Alim Rama, stated that the ruling party was against the division of Kosovo into several electoral zones.

"The position of the Self-Determination Movement is that Kosovo is too small to be divided into areas. The division into several zones complicates the process, especially for reserved seats. We think that the current focus should be on the administration of the electoral process, but not on these essential issues that can be solved later," he said.

Rama noted that other demands of the Self-Determination Movement were similar to the EU and OSCE recommendations, which referred to the issues such as regulating the certification of candidates, improving the voter list, or simplifying the way of voting for foreigners.