Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan
Since The Republic of Uzbekistan is full swing preparing for the upcoming Presidential Elections to be held on December 4, 2016, the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan has sent the official invitation to the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS Executive Committee), the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB) to observe the elections of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
In accordance with Article 5 of the Law of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On elections of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan” election commissions carry out preparation and holding of elections of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan openly and publicly. The mass media of the Republic of Uzbekistan cover the process of preparation and holding of the elections.
At all events of the preparation and holding of elections, as well as in polling stations on election day and counting of votes at each polling station have the right to participate per one observer from political parties which nominated candidates for President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, representatives of the print media, TV and radio, observers from other states, international organizations and movements. Their mandates should be confirmed by appropriate documents.
The mandates to observers from other states, international organizations and movements are issued by the Central Election Commission, their activities are regulated by the Provision “On observers from other states, international organizations and movements participating in the elections”, approved by the Resolution of the Central Election Commission № 734 dated September 15, 2016 and developed in line with the laws of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On elections of President of the Republic of Uzbekistan” and “On the Central election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan”, as well as the universally recognized norms and principles of international law on the organization and holding of elections.
It should be noted that the participation of foreign and international observers in the elections of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan serves to strengthen the principles of transparency and openness of the entire electoral process, respect for the principles of democratic elections such as: universality, equality, freedom and secret ballot.