By EuAsiaNews
Brussels: The European Commission will deploy a 15-member strong EU Election Observation Mission (EOM) for the first elections of a National Assembly in Bhutan scheduled to take place on 24 March.
The EU mission to cost 1 million euro will be led by a Spanish Member of the European Parliament, José Javier Pomés Ruiz, who will leave for Bhutan on Friday 22 February and will stay for a period of seven weeks on the ground.
The EU attaches great importance to the process of democratic transition in Bhutan, including the elections and the adoption of the constitution, stressed a statement released here Thursday, by the EU’s executive body.
“The elections for the National Assembly of the Kingdom of Bhutan are a milestone in the country’s history: they will allow the Bhutanese people to exercise their democratic right to vote and to determine their own future,” said Benita Ferrero-Waldner, EU Commissioner for External Relations.
The National Assembly elections will be the first multi-party general elections to take place in Bhutan, which had no parliamentary monarchy until now.