April 26 polls meet all principles of electoral law - Kazakh CEC
ASTANA. May 21 (Interfax) - The Kazakh Central Election Commission (CEC) has disagreed with a number of conclusions presented by observers from the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE/ODIHR) following the April 26 presidential elections in Kazakhstan.
"The Central Election Commission disagrees with some of the critical remarks made by the OSCE/ODIHR mission that monitored the early presidential elections and would like to offer its own arguments," CEC said in a commentary issued in response to an OSCE/ODIHR preliminary report analyzing the April 26 polls. The commentary was published on the Kazakh CEC website.
"The presidential elections in Kazakhstan were transparent and open, as well as met all principles of the electoral law. The record-high voter turnout confirms the unprecedented civil and political activity of its citizens," it said.
"All candidates enjoyed a level playing field, enabling them to conduct their election campaigns unhindered. The candidates' programs differed drastically and received equal coverage in the media. The freedom of expression and debate was observed," according to the document.
When responding to monitor complaints that voters had not been offered a genuine choice between candidates, the CEC noted that "the electoral alternative principle was observed and two rivals facing the incumbent president were worthy candidates."
When commenting on other critical remarks, Kazakhstan's CEC said that the requirement for the country's president to have an excellent command of the Kazakh language is stipulated by the constitution.
The CEC also disagreed that broad media coverage of the incumbent president's activities breached the principle of candidates' equal access to the media.
"Media coverage of the incumbent president in his official capacity was not part of his election campaign. It was coverage of the president's day-to-day work. It is permitted by international practice," the CEC said.
