The "Southeast Europe: People and Culture" photo competition officially closed on 20 January. The jury has selected the final 24 photos from some 3200 photos submitted to the competition. Now it is time for the public to choose their favourite. The Europe-wide photo competition was organised by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Enlargement. Its goal was to raise awareness and present the cultures of Southeast Europe, while showing the dynamism of the cultural, gastronomic and sports scenes of the region. Participants were asked to express their vision on contemporary Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Kosovo under UNSCR 1244/1999) and Turkey through images on art, dance & theatre, film, gastronomy, literature, music, sports, and everyday life. Photographers from around the EU and the Candidates and Potential Candidates in Southeast Europe sent in their images, raising the total number of submissions to some 3.200 photos. An international jury consisting of acclaimed photographers met in Brussels and selected the top 24 photos on the basis of the visualisation of the competition themes, the degree of creativity, originality, and clarity of presentation, as well as the general appeal of the image. Now, it's time to vote for the public's favourite. Citizens from all over Europe are invited to have their say by voting for the picture they like the best. The photographer whose image receives the most votes will win the Public's Favourite Award, including a prize consisting of photographic equipment. He or she will also be invited to the exhibitions presenting the winning photos in Madrid and Brussels later this year. The photos can be seen online at www.southeast-europe.eu. Public voting ends 26 March. For more details and information on the online voting, please visit www.southeast-europe.eu. Press contact: Suvi Juvonen European Commission/ DG Enlargement Tel. + 32 (0)2 296 72 50 Email: suvi.juvonen@ec.europa.eu Orsolya Imecs Media Consulta International Holding Tel. +49 (0)30 65 000 322 Email: o.imecs@media-consulta.com Related links and documents: • Press Release in English • "Southeast Europe: People and Culture" website • Photo competition Online voting