11 October 2001

U.S. Encouraged by Democratic Reforms in Kyrgyzstan

The United States appreciates Kyrgyzstan's pledge of support in the international fight against terrorism and welcomes steps toward economic, electoral, and media reform in that country, according to Ambassador David T. Johnson, head of the U.S. mission to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

Following is a transcript of Johnson's remarks October 11 to the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to begin by sincerely thanking Ambassador Wieclaw for his hard work over the past three years. He has indeed set a high standard. We will miss him, and hope to have the opportunity to work with him again in the OSCE.

As we said recently in this room to President Akayev, the United States appreciates Kyrgyzstan's pledge of full support in the international fight against terrorism and in bringing to justice the perpetrators, their supporters and those who harbor them. The events of September 11 have clearly shown that governments need more than ever to ensure rule of law, respect for human rights, and an active and vibrant civil society.

In this context, we look forward to the Bishkek Conference on Enhancing Security and Stability in Central Asia: Strengthening Comprehensive Efforts to Counter Terrorism. At this conference, we hope to look at practical ways we can work with our Central Asian partners, as well as all of our colleagues around this table to combat the international scourge of terrorism.

We also look forward to the outcome of the forthcoming seminar on "Small and Medium-Sized Private Enterprises." We hope that this seminar can result in future programs to assist the development of the private sector.

Like Ambassador Wieclaw, we are also looking forward to positive developments concerning new electoral legislation in Kyrgyzstan. We hope that the results can be applied to the upcoming local elections later this fall. We welcome that several ODIHR recommendations have been incorporated into the new draft, including the extension of the claims period and the removal of restrictions on registration of parties.

We look forward to the acceptance of additional ODIHR recommendations on changing the process of selecting the chairman of the Central Electoral Commission to ensure that individual's independence. Another constructive step from our point of view would be the revision of proposed amendments to allow foreign help to support domestic observation efforts.

We also wish to encourage the Government of Kyrgyzstan to ensure that the media re-registration process is transparent and fair, and encourages the development of truly independent media. In this respect, we welcome the center's proposal to augment its staff by adding a media advisor.

We wish again to state that we were pleased with the decision by Kyrgyz authorities to pardon Mr. Turgunaliyev. We look forward to similar news of a resolution of the case of Feliks Kulov.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.