Kazakhstan's Democratic Forces Forum |
Address
by the conference of democratic forces of Central Asia Currently in the countries of Central Asia, authoritarian regimes have become established where power is concentrated in the hands of one individual. They are characterised by unfair, rigged elections, parliaments that are repeatedly dissolved, the independent mass media closed down, a lack of local self rule, total control over the judiciary, presidents who repeatedly extend their term of office and extend their powers without justification, to the detriment of other institutions of power. The people have no means of influencing the decision making process. The curtailment of democratic processes has led to restrictions and universal infringements of fundamental human rights, including the rights of ethnic and religious minorities. The right to vote and to be elected has been severely limited, as has the right of assembly, the right to hold meetings and peaceful demonstrations, the right to obtain and disseminate information, and freedom of speech. The absence of democratic means of limiting power and expressing the interests of society has led to the total corruption of the ruling state bodies and embezzlement of public funds, universal impoverishment, pauperisation and marginalisation. It is common practice for foreign investors to be drawn into shady financial dealings. There have been cases of managers of transnational corporations working in the region, and even members off foreign and international intelligence services, being involved in corruption, in the interests of the ruling elite. Aid given by Western governments is generally not used for its intended purposes, often to the detriment of democratic and market reforms. There is unprecedented pressure on political dissent, the democratic opposition and the opposition press, which has been virtually eliminated. The functioning mass media are under total state control or owned by representatives of the ruling clans. As a result, the potential for public protest is increasing and finding expression in various forms; social, political and interethnic tension is growing; there is a mass exodus of people from the country and a real threat of "Balkanisation" of the region. In this situation the democratic forces of the Central Asian states represent the best hope for stabilisation, the formation of a civil society and the strengthening of the rule of law. We are decisively opposed to the political terrorism and extremism towards which the ruling regimes are inexorably moving. We are not calling for the isolation of the Central Asian countries. On the contrary, we support the fullest extension of our countries' integration into the international community. The deciding factor for international support should be strict control over and targeted use of aid and the strict linking of aid programmes to demands for democratic reforms. A national dialogue between the ruling regimes and democratic opposition, overseen by an authoritative international institution like the OSCE, could represent a peaceful solution to the political crisis. Urgent support is needed to save freedom of speech and information in the region, to set up an independent publishing centre for the whole of Central Asia and a network of independent internet providers and to increase radio broadcasts to the region from abroad. We hope that our initiative will meet with maximum understanding and support from the international democratic community. Dododzhon Atovulloev, Tajikistan London, 26 Marñh 2001 |
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