OSCE international observer report on Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections disregarded "the principles of independent and impartial observation," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.
The ministry was “saddened” to see that the report by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) "cites examples exceeding the framework of the election process and disregarding the principles of independent and impartial observation," the statement says.
The statement said Sunday’s Turkish elections were conducted in line with "free democratic election standards and with an exemplary voter turnout of 88%"
Welcoming the OSCE’s acknowledgement of the high voter turnout of almost 90% as a mark of democratic maturity, it added: "Exaggerated negative conclusions and generalizations derived from certain unconfirmed exceptional and individual cases by the observer mission have raised question marks in terms of the methodology of the EOM [Election Observation Mission]."
"Political analysis and biased comments" made by the OSCE mission only "jeopardize" the mission’s credibility. It is noteworthy that the observation mission confirmed that the elements highlighted in the said report do not have any effect on the efficiency and legitimacy of the election process," the statement added.
It also said Turkey inviting international observers for the elections showed its confidence in its democracy. "The observers, enjoying our full cooperation, have successfully performed their observation missions safely and freely," Anadolu Agency cited the statement as saying.
