Thank you, Madame Chairperson.

The United States was disappointed with the conduct of the October 29 presidential election in Kyrgyzstan. The ODIHR Election Observation Mission stated in its preliminary report that the election failed to comply with OSCE commitments. That is an assessment that we fully support.

We are concerned by the effective exclusion of some local representatives of non-partisan, independent NGOs from monitoring on election day. These NGOs contributed to the transparency of the Parliamentary elections that were held earlier this year.

In addition, the pre-election period was marred by strong government pressure on the independent media, and limitations on candidates’ ability to campaign freely. The Kyrgyz government used the judicial system to disqualify major political opponents. These actions taken together served to limit the information available to voters and to limit the voters’ choice.

On the day these elections took place, we welcomed the fact that the six registered candidates remained on the ballot and were able to field monitors, although we were dismayed that fourteen other candidates had previously been denied registration.

ODIHR’s report did note some encouraging improvements in Kyrgyzstan’s electoral legislation, but also observed that failure fully to implement such improvements critically weakened the elections. These factors, along with the restricted and biased media, undermined the validity of the elections and ultimately rendered them neither free nor fair.

These elections represented an opportunity for the Kyrgyz government to remedy problems and reverse negative trends that arose during the parliamentary elections.

Instead, these elections represented a setback for the development of democracy.

Democratization is a long and difficult process. Despite the current setbacks, we continue to believe that fundamental elements of civil society are becoming incrementally established in Kyrgyzstan.

We hope that the Government of Kyrgyzstan and its people will work swiftly, deliberately, and cooperatively to improve its electoral system and practices and restore confidence in Kyrgyzstan’s commitment to democratic principles.

Thank you.