39 Uzbek districts to hold repeat parliamentary election voting.

TASHKENT, January 10 (Itar-Tass) - Uzbekistan on Sunday will hold
repeat voting at elections to the lower (legislative) house of the
national parliament.

This decision was made by the republic's Central
Election Commission (CEC) in connection with the fact that on the main
election day on December 27, 2009 in 39 out of 135 electoral districts
none of the candidates managed to get more than 50 percent of votes of the
electorate needed for the victory.

According to Uzbekistan's legislation, the repeat voting is held for
two candidates to deputies that got the largest number of votes in the
first round. The candidate who gets a simple majority of votes cast by the
electorate who came to the polls is considered elected to the parliament.
As many as 33 percent of registered voters should vote in order to
recognise the second round of the elections valid.
By the results of the first round the CEC of Uzbekistan at its meeting
on January 8 registered to the lower house of parliament 96 deputies,
including 33 from the Movement of Entrepreneurs and Businesspeople -
Liberal Democratic Party, 25 - from the Democratic Party Milliy Tiklanish
(National Movement), 22 - from the People's Democratic Party and 16 - from
the Social Democratic Party Adolat (Justice). Among the elected deputies
there are 19 women or 19.8 percent.
Uzbekistan elects on national level a head of state - the president -
and a legislature. The president is elected for a five-year term by the
people. The Supreme Assembly or National Assembly (Oliy Majlis) has 120
members in the Legislative Chamber, elected for a five-year terms and 100
members in the Senate; 84 members elected at the sessions of district,
regional and city deputies, and 16 members appointed by the president.
Most parties are excluded. Uzbekistan is a state dominated by the
supporters of a head of state - the president. Opposition parties are
allowed, but are widely considered to have no real chance of gaining
power. Uzbekistan has the highest voting age in the world, at 25.
The number of seats in the lower house of Uzbekistan's bicameral
parliament was increased in December 2008 from 120 to 150, with 15 seats
reserved for election by the country's Ecological Movement.
The third elections for the bicameral 150-member Oliy Majlis for
five-year term, comprising of the Legislative Chamber and the 100-member
Senate, was held on 27 December 2009, with 517 candidates. According to
the Uzbekistan's Election Commission, the following parties were allowed
to take part in these elections: Adolat (Social-Democratic Party of
Uzbekistan) with 123 candidates, Milliy Tiklanish (Democratic Party of
Uzbekistan) with 125 candidates, the People's Democratic Party of
Uzbekistan (PDP) with 134 candidates, the Liberal-Democratic Party of
Uzbekistan (UzLiDeP) with 135 candidates, and the Ecological Movement of
Uzbekistan. The election was monitored by over 270 observers from 36
countries and representatives of four international missions.
Turnout as the polls closed was nearly 88 percent of the eligible
voters, according to the Central Election Commission of Uzbekistan.
Uzbekistani President Islam Karimov, a former Communist Party leader who
has led the country since 1989, has been criticized for silencing
political opposition.
Election observers with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation
in Europe (OSCE) said the presidential election two years ago was
"characterized by the absence of any real competition of ideas and
political views," noting that Karimov's three opponents each publicly
endorsed him. The group's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights (ODIHR) declined to send a full observation mission to this
election, saying "fundamental freedoms continue to be limited" and
Uzbekistan still "does not offer the electorate a genuine choice."
According to ODIHR report, "Freedom of the media and other fundamental
freedoms that are essential elements of any democratic process continue to
be severely restricted. The campaign, including in the media, appears to
be strictly controlled by the CEC. In the absence of vibrant pluralistic
media, the state-owned National Television and Radio Company (NTRC)
remains the key provider of radio and TV broadcasts. It is, therefore,
also the most significant source of information about the electoral
campaign. The NTRC plans to cover the elections in its news programmes,
organize electoral debates, and provide registered candidates equal free
airtime and possibilities for advertisement."
"Given that fundamental freedoms continue to be limited, that the
current political spectrum does not offer the electorate a genuine choice
between competing political alternatives, that previous key OSCE/ODIHR
recommendations remain unaddressed, and that no progress has been achieved
in bringing the legal framework closer in line with OSCE commitments, the
OSCE/ODIHR NAM does not consider the deployment of an election observation
mission, even of a limited nature, meaningful," it said.
Karimov acknowledged that "previously, there were no political parties
vying for political influence and power," but he said this year's race for
the Parliament's lower chamber had injected genuine competition into the
process, largely because the four parties have vocally criticized one
another.
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