La Paz, January 27, 2008 - Chief of the EU Election Observation Mission in Bolivia, Renate Weber - MEP, has today made public, in a press conference, the preliminary statement of the EU-EOM.

The EU representative has congratulated the Bolivian people for the "peaceful and democratic manner in which they went to the polls last Sunday". but warned about "the need for dialogue and for consolidation of the democratic institutions".

The report is based on the findings of 64 EU observers, deployed to all 9 departments of Bolivia, since mid December, to assess the referendum process in accordance with international principles for democratic elections.

"We appreciate the work of the Electoral Authorities, especially in regard to the transparency of the data gathering, insured through the online publication of the minutes. However, we believe we should report on the use of public resources during the campaign", Renate Weber stated.

Liberal MEP Renate Weber - member of the LIBE Committee of the European Parliament - is the first Romanian representative to ever be nominated as Chief of an EU-EO Mission.

The preliminary statement of the EU Mission in Bolivia is attached (in English, respectively in Spanish).

Details on the Bolivia EU-EOM, on the Mission's official website .