OSCE Chairman encourages Tajik Government to push ahead with democratic reforms

DUSHANBE, 30 March 2006 - Continuing his trip in Central Asia to raise the profile of the OSCE, the Chairman-in-Office, Belgian Foreign Minister, Karel De Gucht, visited Tajikistan on Thursday and met with President Emomali Rakhmonov, Foreign Minister Talbak Nazarov and representatives of civil society, political parties and the media.

De Gucht praised the country's economic development, but noted that progress is still needed to further democracy. "We discussed Tajikistan's path to democracy based on economic development and an open society with free and fair elections," said the Minister.

He gave President Rakhmonov assurances that the OSCE would continue to balance its activities in all three dimensions.

During discussions with senior officials, the Chairman-in-Office expressed satisfaction with the country's strong support for programmes to control small arms and light weapons. He also welcomed the Government's efforts to curb corruption, while calling on it to stop interference in business.

He encouraged Tajikistan to develop a national action plan to address prison conditions and offered the Organization's assistance in doing this. He encouraged the adoption of the draft action plan to combat human trafficking and welcomed the state's programme on gender issues as a positive step forward.

The Belgian Chairmanship's priorities in the fields of transport, combating organized crime and enhancing energy security were also important for Tajikistan, De Gucht noted. Given its location on the frontier of the OSCE region, the country faces specific challenges to security from drug trafficking and international terrorism. In this respect, Minister De Gucht discussed measures for enhancing Tajikistan's border security and was encouraged by its strong participation in the global fight against terrorism.

However, the Chairman-in-Office reminded the Government that "the fight against terrorism should not be used as a pretext to control civil society." He encouraged his Tajik counterpart to refrain from using legislation to hinder the development of civil society, a dangerous trend in the region. He welcomed Foreign Minister Nazarov's assurances that the controversial law on non-governmental organizations would not be passed before the presidential election due this November.

"Democratisation is a process and we have to establish the right conditions for it to flourish," said the Chairman. "Elections are one element of a democratic society and I urge Tajikistan to invite the OSCE to observe the presidential election." The Minister gave assurances that the OSCE was ready to provide support during the pre-election period and offer its further advice on the election law.

On media freedom, the Belgian Minister welcomed the decisions to release the journalist Jumaboy Tolibov and to reconsider the case of Mukhtor Boqizoda of the newspaper, Nerui Sukhan. He also received assurances from Foreign Minister Nazarov that the BBC would receive its licence as soon as it submitted the registration documents.