13 August 2009 - Six weeks after the launch of the EU EOM and one week before Election Day for the Presidential and Provincial Council Elections in Afghanistan, the Mission would like to emphasise three key points.

The EU EOM deplores the number of incidents of violence linked to the electoral campaign and the difficult security environment caused by anti-government elements, which has limited freedom of movement and political assembly. Despite these constraints, the election campaign has taken place in a generally dignified atmosphere, which enabled a vibrant debate.

This relative calm can partly be explained by the fact that the majority of the Afghan people are tired of violence and want only peace and stability. The vigour of political debates also clearly demonstrates the desire of the Afghan people to take part in the construction of their own future. All this makes it even more crucial that every effort is made to ensure these elections are held in an acceptable way, with results that reflect the will of the people.

We therefore commend the actions and approach taken by the Afghan authorities, together with the international community, to secure these elections. We also acknowledge the measures adopted by the Independent Electoral Commission to detect & prevent attempts at fraud. Within this framework, the European Union Election Observation Mission, along with other national and international observers, will observe the implementation & effectiveness of these measures.

We have faith that the Afghan people will act in a peaceful and calm way on Election Day, and be patient while waiting for the official announcement of results by the IEC. We encourage all candidates and their supporters to avoid any action which could undermine the legitimacy of the results, with consequences that could have an effect on the stability of the whole country.

The EU Election Observation Mission, acting in complete independence and with respect to its obligation of impartiality, will continue to observe the rest of the campaign, polling, counting, tallying of results and the complaints and appeals process, and will condemn any serious breach of electoral rules and procedures.

Note: The Chief Observer of the EU EOM is Philippe Morillon.