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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DUSHANBE 001723 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR SCA/CEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KDEM TI
SUBJECT: EIGHT WEEKS OUT: CCER ISSUING DECREES LEFT AND RIGHT 
 
DUSHANBE 00001723  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1.  Tajikistan's Central Committee on Elections and Referenda 
(CCER) signed a new decree September 15 addressing candidates' 
usage of mass media during the presidential campaign, 
establishing polling stations and forming a working group to 
deal with international observers.  The decrees are a small step 
forward, but media time is still limited and the CCER did not 
fully engage political parties in the process.  CCER members 
signed the decree in the presence of the Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs, Parliament members, Ministry of Justice, presidential 
advisors, media and the international community.  Although the 
meeting is supposedly open to all, political parties were not 
invited to the table. 
 
¶2.  The decree signed on September 15 grants each candidate a 
total of 30 minutes of TV and radio airtime and 10 minutes for 
each candidate's proxies.  A candidate may have up to 15 
proxies.  Candidates are allowed to submit articles for 
publication in state and independent press.  When submitting 
articles to newspapers, the candidate's article should not 
exceed ten double-spaced typed pages.  If a candidate wishes to 
obtain more airtime or press space, he must fund it himself. 
During the meeting, a state television representative piped up 
and protested that the amount of free airtime is too much. 
Boltoyev, Chairman of the CCER, assuaged him by saying that the 
amount of time is not excessive and pointed out that in other 
countries, candidates are on the air 24/7.  Campaign posters for 
all candidates will be in A3 format, the text will be in size 16 
font and the candidate's photo should be no bigger than 9 x 14. 
 
¶3.  The decree named an 11-person committee to work with and 
organize international observers for the election.  It also 
listed 26 voting stations to be set up abroad.  Several polling 
station sites will be established in Russia to accommodate the 
numerous labor migrants.  Other countries include Afghanistan, 
former Soviet Union countries and South Asian neighbors.  Two 
stations will be set up in Washington, DC and New York.  In a 
meeting with PolOff, Deputy Head of the CCER, Muhibulloh 
Dodojonov agreed to allow observers in the polling stations 
abroad as well.  The election protocols will be posted at 
polling stations and distributed to international observers, 
political parties and other such groups. 
 
 
DECREES 42 and 43 
 
¶4.  The CCER issued decrees number 42 and 43 signed September 4, 
but the international community did not receive a copy until the 
week of September 11 and the majority of political parties did 
not receive the decree at all.  EmbOffs distributed copies of 
the signed decrees to political parties.  Decree 42 sets out the 
rights and responsibilities of international and domestic 
observers.  Decree 43 stipulates guidelines for political 
parties to register representatives to the district and 
provincial election committees.  Each party must submit the name 
of its one representative to each local election committee for 
CCER approval 45 days prior to the election. 
 
¶5.  When international missions received Decree 42 and 43, 
UNTOP, OSCE, IFES and PolOff lobbied the CCER to implement 
changes.  For example, in the original draft of Decree 42, 
international observers were not allowed to be present in voting 
booths while voters marked their ballots.  This rule was not 
restricted to the political party representatives, which meant 
that if a party representative tried to influence a voter in the 
booth, he would, technically, be allowed.  Also Decree 43 did 
not explicitly allow parties that did not nominate candidates to 
the election to field observers. 
 
¶6.  In PolOff's meeting with Dodojonov September 12 he agreed to 
modify the Decrees based on the concerns the international 
 
DUSHANBE 00001723  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
community raised.  The CCER then edited the Decrees and 
re-signed them incorporating concerns raised including bringing 
into congruence rules for international and local political 
observers and permitting all political parties to field 
observers.  Dodojonov acknowledged that Tajikistan still has a 
long way to go in order to fully meet international standards. 
Dodojonov made a plea for international financial assistance to 
fund publications of election manuals so that international 
observers and local commission members know all the rules.  He 
also commented that the CCER is cash-strapped.  Because the CCER 
does not have money for salaried employees, local governments 
handpick district and provincial elections commission members. 
According to Dodojonov, because of this, the commissions are 
often biased.  If the CCER could employ and train its own 
employees, the commissions would be more independent.  He 
welcomes short-term OSCE observers and international assistance 
in reforming elections procedures in Tajikistan. 
 
 
MORE CHANGES TO COME 
 
¶7.  An IFES international consultant will be working with the 
CCER on developing an elections manual, which will delineate 
precise voting regulations and instructions.  This manual will 
clarify remaining ambiguities.  The CCER has agreed to turn the 
manual into an official decree, giving its contents the status 
of law. 
 
¶8.  The OSCE is expected to send a full-scale observation 
mission with 100 short-term observers.  However, this decision 
can be rescinded if the OSCE deems that no legitimate opposition 
candidates run in the election or if candidates do not have fair 
and adequate access to the media. 
 
 
COMMENT: 
 
¶9.  The amount of free media time and space stipulated in the 
latest decree for candidates is limited.  By virtue of being 
president, Rahmonov has practically unlimited exposure in the 
media. He is the wealthiest of any prospective candidate and can 
buy all the press time he wants. 
 
¶10.  Another point of concern is the lack of engagement with all 
political parties.  Although the CCER has been open and 
cooperative with the international community, they have not made 
a strong effort to reach out to political parties, evident by 
the fact that political parties were not informed about the 
decrees and did not participate in the last CCER meeting. 
 
¶11.  The changes that Dodojonov and the CCER were willing to 
make to the decrees show they are genuinely concerned about how 
Tajikistan is perceived by the international community. But the 
shortcomings in the original draft of Decrees 42 and 43 show 
that the CCER still needs a lot of hand-holding.  Working with 
IFES's consultant Ian Smith to edit necessary changes into the 
election manual so it can be issued as a decree is critical to 
laying the legal foundation for the election process.  This also 
paves the way for future elections and opens the door for 
further reform. 
 
END COMMENT. 
JACOBSON