OSCE welcomes democratic reform initiative announced by Kazakhstani President

WARSAW, 30 October 2000 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) welcomes an initiative for democratic reforms announced by the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, in a speech on 24 October 2000. In his annual speech on the State of the Republic, the President mentioned a number of political goals to be achieved in the coming years in order to further democratize the political system, including strengthening the independence of the court system and legal reform, improvement of election legislation, and strengthening of civil society.

"The ODIHR took note with great interest of the President's intention to launch this initiative for the democratization of the political system", said ODIHR Director Gérard Stoudmann. "We look forward to the implementation of the reforms which we consider crucial for the development of democracy in Kazakhstan. The ODIHR stands ready to assist the Kazakhstani authorities in implementing the reforms." In particular, the ODIHR expresses its support for the "Round Table on Elections" process that began in Kazakhstan in September 2000. This process has the potential to address the President's pledge to perfect the election legislation in light of the OSCE/ODIHR recommendations following the 1999 Parliamentary Elections in Kazakhstan.

The ODIHR has been engaged in assisting the democratization process in Kazakhstan since the mid-1990s. In 1998, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed, which serves as a framework for a number of projects implemented by the ODIHR in the fields of civil society, gender equality, legislative review, assistance to the Ombudsman institution, freedom of movement, reform of the prison system and voter education.

For further information contact Jens-Hagen Eschenbächer, OSCE/ODIHR Public Affairs Officer, tel.: +48-22-520 06 00 or +48-603 683 122 (mobile).