Azernews.Az

An observer mission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation began its activity as part of monitoring the parliamentary election in Uzbekistan, the Uzbek CEC told Trend.

The mission is headed by Ali Abolhassani, Director of the OIC Department of Political Affairs. The mission includes the representatives of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sudan, Palestine and other countries.

The OIC has been monitoring the election in member-states since 2006. The OIC mission observed the election in Azerbaijan, Algeria, Guinea, Kyrgyzstan, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nigeria, Sudan, Tunisia and other countries from 2006 to 2014, as well as in Uzbekistan in 2009.

The election to the Legislative Chamber of Oliy Majlis (lower house of the Uzbek parliament) is to take place on December 21.

Currently, the mission of OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and the observers’ mission from CIS are operating in Uzbekistan. Moreover, observers from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and Organization of Islamic Cooperation will join them soon.

Additionally, the CEC has registered around 300 observers from almost 40 countries. Over 340 representatives of the national and foreign media outlets will take part in covering the elections.

Earlier, four political parties of Uzbekistan were allowed to take part in the election.

These are the Liberal Democratic Party, People’s Democratic Party, the Democratic Party Milly Tiklanish (National Revival), and the Social Democratic Party Adolat (Justice).

Each of them nominated 135 MP candidates in accordance with the number of electoral districts.

Uzbekistan’s bicameral parliament was created in 2005. Its legislative chamber permanently employs 150 MPs from four political parties and the Uzbek Ecological Movement. They were elected in Dec. 2009 for a five-year period.

The MPs from the Ecological Movement will be elected at a conference on December 21.

The parliament’s upper house, known as the Senate, employs 100 MPs elected in equal numbers, i.e. six MPs from the Karakalpakstan Republic, regions and the city of Tashkent.
Aside from that, the Uzbek president appoints 16 members of the Senate from among the most distinguished citizens.