DUSHANBE, February 25, 2015, Asia-Plus — The bill proposing amendments to the country’s law on elections to the Majlisi Oli (Tajik parliament) has been tabled to the agenda of a sitting of the fifth session of the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower house of parliament) of the fourth convocation that is being held today.
Chairman of the Majlisi Namoyandagon Committee on Legislation and Human Rights, Mahmadali Vatanov, is one of authors of the amendments proposed to the country’s election legislation.
The bill, in particular, provides for extending party lists from 30 to 45 percent. Vatanov notes that it does not mean that the number of deputies elected from party list will increase from 22 to 28. “Extension of the party lists gives political parties an opportunity to nominate more candidates and have more reserve to replace retiring deputies elected from the party lists,” Vatanov said.
“The draft amendments also provide for regulation of the process of voting for Tajik citizens residing abroad. Polling stations established abroad will be headed by heads of Tajikistan’s representative offices in those countries. Besides, under the current election legislation, only 30 to 3,000 people can vote at a polling station. The amendments provide for cancelling this requirement for polling stations set up for Tajik citizens residing abroad. More people can vote at those polling stations,” Vatanov stressed.
According to him, the draft amendments also provide for reducing the electoral deposit required from each candidate from 8,000 somoni to 4,000 somoni and increasing air time for candidates.
“The draft amendments also prohibit local officials from presiding over candidates’ meetings with voters,” MP noted.
Vatanov said that they had taken into consideration recommendations of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) while working out the amendments to the RT Law “On Election to the Majlisi Oli.”
Meanwhile, MP Saidumar Huseini, who represents the Islamic Revival Party (IRP) in Tajikistan’s lower house of parliament, said today morning that amendments offered to the country’s election legislation by him and IRP leader Muhiddin Kabiri will not be considered by the Majlisi Namoyandagon.
According to him, the amendments offered by them are aimed at, first of all, “making the election process more democratic and transparent.”
“Under the current election legislation candidates must have held residency in Tajikistan for at least five years. We consider that it is necessary to abolish this qualification,” Huseini noted.
The IRP also offers to extend the period of nomination of candidates from 45 to 60 days before the election day.
“Political parties have the right to nominate their candidates to the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda (CCER). In line with legal provisions, members of the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda (CCER) are appointed by the parliament on the proposal of the president. We propose that the president should take into consideration opinions of political parties when proposing candidates to the CCER” Huseini said.
They also propose to establish legal provision for political party representation in precinct election commissions (PECs) and obligate PECs to submit authenticated protocol copies to observers immediately after counting of votes.
“We propose to reduce the electoral deposit for parliament candidates form 8,000 somoni to 800 somoni,” Saidumar Huseini said stressing that if parliament candidate gets more than ten percent of the vote, the electoral deposit will be returned to him.
The Majlisi Namoyandagon consists of 63 deputies, and currently, 22 of them are elected proportionally from political party lists in a single nationwide constituency with a 5 percent threshold for seat allocation and forty-one deputies are elected in single-mandate constituencies under a two-round majoritarian system.
