The OSCE/ODIHR election observation mission issued on February 21 a statement of preliminary findings and conclusions on the February 20 Kyrgyz parliamentary elections. The statement provides a balanced and fair assessment of the election.

We join the ODIHR in acknowledging the hard work of elections officials across Kyrgyzstan. We applaud the constructive work of the Kyrgyz NGO community and the independent media in the election process. We were pleased to see greater co-operation between the Kyrgyz Government and the Kyrgyz NGO community that led to a more transparent process on Election Day.

We strongly urge the Government of Kyrgyzstan to rectify the problems identified by the ODIHR before the second round of voting to ensure that the Kyrgyz people are afforded the opportunity to make their choice among the widest range of candidates.