Today, at the National Assembly House, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Oliver Dulic, called an election for the President of the Republic of Serbia for 20 January 2008.

In his press release, Speaker Dulic stated:

“Esteemed citizens of Serbia,

It is my pleasure to inform you that I have just called an election for the President of the Republic of Serbia for 20 January 2008.

Every election is a celebration of democracy, a moment when a nation is truly sovereign in the election of its representatives. I expect these elections to be an opportunity to confirm the maturity of our society and that the upcoming campaign will be fair and honest.

Every new election is an opportunity to strengthen democratic values and fortify a country’s stability. That is particularly important today having in mind the challenges Serbia faces in terms of the preservation of its territorial integrity.

I wish to thank all Serbian citizens and social actors who have been expecting the elections for a long time now for, their patience and understanding.

I also wish to thank the members of parliament and political parties on their effort to meet all the conditions so the election for the President of the Republic could be called with an absolute respect of the provisions of the Constitution and the Constitutional Law. These provisions state that the elections be called before 31 December of this year, that is after the bills regulating the position of and election for the President of the Republic, defence and the Serbian Armed Forces, foreign affairs and security services, have been passed.

Article 111 of the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia states that “The President of the Republic shall express state unity of the Republic of Serbia”. Having in mind the importance of the President of the Republic’s role, I would like to use the act of calling an election to urge all Serbian citizens to vote and not allow our shared destiny to be decided without them. That is out right as citizens, as well as our duty to the country of Serbia where we live and which we all love.”