GEORGIA:The controversy over last week's presidential election in Georgia has increased tensions between the main European election watchdog and parliamentary observers, who declared the poll a "triumphant step" for democracy.
That widely reported remark by US congressman Alcee Hastings infuriated opposition parties in Georgia who say the poll was marred by fraud and intimidation.
Long-term election monitors, too, are irritated that Mr Hastings's "triumphant" verdict - made after a five-day tour heading a team of parliamentary observers - overshadowed their own far more critical view of the Georgian poll.
"People working here for a long time did not appreciate the initiative he took upon himself to declare these elections wonderful," said one official from the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), adding that Mr Hastings did not speak for the office
Incumbent president Mikheil Saakashvili, after winning 52 per cent of the vote, has vowed to continue his radical pro-western reform plans for the former Soviet republic. Opposition leader Levan Gachechiladze said yesterday he would go on hunger strike to protest against what he called a fraudulent election result.
The preliminary election report issued by ODIHR, a division of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), makes for sobering reading. Far from a "triumphant step for democracy", the report expresses "major concerns".
According to one source: "If you wanted to simplify it, though we're not supposed to, you could call the Georgian election free but not fair."
Some at the ODIHR attribute the positive spin Mr Hastings put on the election to the positive disposition western leaders have towards the Georgian president.
The diplomatic language of the the office's post-election press release reflects this. However, its longer election report lists many concerns, from inaccurate electoral registers and a "lack of balance" in television coverage to a "partisan" central election committee overseeing the elections.
The document confirms many complaints made by opposition parties of police threats, arbitrary arrests and a "blurring of the line between state and political party". One blatant example was the pre-election distribution of vouchers for utilities and medication.
The report said isolated instances of violence against opposition activists, including kidnapping, were reported and verified. Crucially, however, the report says observers found no evidence of systematic manipulation of the election, as claimed by opposition leaders. Violations of OSCE electoral guidelines varied greatly from region to region and, the organisation suggests, were often due to incompetence rather than organised fraud.
Many ODIHR officials have questioned the wisdom of parachuting in Mr Hastings, a Florida politician who was impeached and removed as a federal judge in 1989 in connection with a bribery case.