Oriented on making people closer

A delegation led by Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Turkmenistan Gulmyrat Muradov has left for a visit to Uzbekistan. The main purpose of the visit, which is being held on the invitation of Chairman of the Central Election Commission of Uzbekistan Zayniddin Nizamkhodjaev, is to observe the elections to the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan, which will be held tomorrow, October 27.

ORIENT, which received accreditation among 97 representatives of 82 media outlets from 37 countries, such as the USA, Great Britain, Hungary, Germany, South Korea, Italy, Azerbaijan, Russia, Turkey, China, etc., was invited from the Turkmen media sphere to cover the most important socio-political event in the neighboring country.

In total, 851 international and foreign observers are expected to participate in the election observations, including 245 from 43 countries, as well as 560 from 13 international organizations, such as the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Organization of Turkic States, and 46 from 24 election commissions of foreign countries. On election day, they will conduct observation at polling stations in Tashkent and the regions of the country.

Today, on Friday, a press conference was held at the Palace of Symposiums in the Uzbek capital, at which Chairman of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan Zayniddin Nizamkhodjaev told journalists and observers about the main events for organizing and holding high-level elections of deputies to the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis and local Kengashes.

It was noted that for the first time in the history of Uzbekistan, elections to the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis are held on the basis of a mixed electoral system, that is, a majoritarian-proportional system.

A mixed electoral system is a system for forming representative bodies of power, in which some deputies are elected on a personal basis in majoritarian single-mandate constituencies, and the other part on a party basis according to the proportional principle of representation.

Thus, 75 out of 150 deputies will be elected to the lower house of parliament from single-mandate constituencies, and the remaining 75 - on the basis of a list of candidates nominated by political parties, proportional to the number of votes cast for political parties in a single electoral district.

Among the main innovations of the current elections in Uzbekistan, it was noted the introduction of the E-Saylov information system into the national electoral system. It is integrated with the interdepartmental platform of the digital government, which has made it possible to minimize bureaucracy, time wastage and paperwork in election procedures.

It was noticeable how the faces of those present at the briefing became animated when innovations that could simplify the participation of voters in the process were discussed. In addition, in order to create additional convenience, for the first time in the history of the country, the organization and conduct of electronic voting on election day is being experimentally introduced at some polling stations in Tashkent.

Interesting data on the composition of candidates were also presented. Thus, 375 candidates for deputies of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis were registered in single-mandate constituencies from five political parties admitted to participate in the election campaign. A total of 875 candidates were nominated, of which 44.7% were women. This is the highest figure in the history of elections in Uzbekistan, which is also due to changes in the Electoral Code of the country - now women must make up at least 40%, and not 30 as before.

The candidates are also much older than in the previous elections. The average age of candidates for deputies of the Legislative Chamber is 47.2 years. Of these, 44.2% are under 45 years old, and 44.3% are over 45-60 years old. The youngest candidate is 25 years old. 99.3% of them have higher education.

The composition of candidates has become more diverse: economists, lawyers, teachers, engineers, doctors, entrepreneurs, farmers - they all represent different layers of society, and this undoubtedly enriches the election process.

Representatives of most nationalities and ethnic groups living in the country are among the candidates for deputies. Of the candidates for the Legislative Chamber and local Kengashes, 973 are Tajiks, 588 are Kazakhs, 146 are Turkmens, 141 are Kyrgyz, 67 are Russians and representatives of other nationalities.

Now about the political parties participating in the elections. There are five of them: the Movement of Entrepreneurs and Businessmen - the Liberal Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Milliy Tiklanish", the Ecological Party of Uzbekistan, the People's Democratic Party of Uzbekistan, the Social Democratic Party of Uzbekistan "Adolat".

Another important point from the list of "firsts": the regulations on the conduct of election campaigning for the first time regulate the issues of preparation and distribution of campaign materials using artificial intelligence technologies. In particular, political parties and candidates for deputies indicate in campaign materials prepared using AI information that these materials were prepared using artificial intelligence technologies.

For the first time in the history of the country's elections, party leaders signed the Rules of Etiquette for Conducting Election Campaigning, developed by political parties jointly with the Central Electoral Commission. According to the organizers, this will prevent the dissemination of fake information during election campaigning, ensure compliance with the main electoral principles and allow voters to freely make their choice.

In accordance with the principles of openness, publicity and transparency, the Press Center and its territorial divisions were created under the CEC. All meetings of the Central Electoral Commission related to preparation for the elections were broadcast live via social networks with sign language translation.

But what is especially touching is the attention to the special needs of citizens with disabilities. Volunteers are ready to help, and all necessary conditions are provided at polling stations. This indicates that the authorities are striving to make the voting process accessible to everyone.

I will describe this moment in more detail from the words of the Uzbek organizers – yet in the process of clarifying the list of voters by door-to-door canvassing, people with disabilities who need support to participate in the elections were taken into account. Volunteers were assigned to them, and stencils based on the Braille alphabet or optical magnifying glasses were delivered to the polling stations, the buildings of some polling stations were specially equipped with ramps for movement in wheelchairs or a "call for help" button.

Of the many figures and indicators voiced at the briefing at the CEC, I will also cite the fact that almost 20 million people are listed in the single electronic list, and more than half a million young people have the opportunity to vote for the first time. This generation will determine the future of their country.

The press center of the Central Election Commission has created call centers to provide prompt information for both citizens living in Uzbekistan and citizens abroad. Moreover, information can be obtained in Uzbek, Karakalpak, Russian and English languages. As the CEC assures, none of the inquiries received - whether from citizens, election organizers or journalists - are left without attention. A group of duty officers, consisting of responsible employees of the Central Election Commission, leading election experts and legal experts, provides timely qualified answers, and also responds to complaints (expressions of dissatisfaction with the conduct of pre-election campaigning were also recorded).

So, everything is ready for voting in the elections, which will take place on Sunday, October 27, from 8 am to 8 pm local time.

Three types of elections will be held simultaneously in the country: to the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis; to the Jokargy Kenes of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, regional and Tashkent city Kengashes of people's deputies; to district and city Kengashes of people's deputies.

150 deputies of the Legislative Chamber, 56 members of the Senate, 65 deputies of the Jokargy Kenes of the Republic of Karakalpakstan, as well as deputies of regional, Tashkent and 208 district (city) Kengashes will be elected.

This is a very important political process, therefore the interest of foreign states and international organizations, as well as election commissions of other countries, including Turkmenistan, in the elections of representative bodies of state power, held this year in Uzbekistan on the basis of the updated electoral legislation, is significantly high.

This was also noticeable from the activity of the audience at the CEC briefing – after the main report, a series of questions and clarifications followed. And the leadership of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan gave answers and explanations, declaring openness to everyone and readiness for dialogue. It was felt that this was really so. The answers to journalists' questions were exhaustive, and the atmosphere in the hall was friendly and constructive, which made everyone feel that they were witnessing something significant.

Bekdurdy AMANSARYEV

Photo: orient.tm