OREANDA-NEWS. December 17, 2008. Drawing a wide political response the parliamentary elections in Turkmenistan were the incontrovertible evidence of the country’s adherence to the policy of democratic reforms.

The nationwide poll held last Sunday in the atmosphere of the genuine freedom of expression concluded the one-month marathon of the intense election campaign which was in the focus of attention of the foreign observes and experts.

During the past few days Turkmenistan was the most frequently mentioned geographical name on the pages of numerous printed and electronic mass media covering the most important event in the social and political life of the modern Turkmen state.

The special excitement was observed on the election day when the official election reports of the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda of Turkmenistan were distributed with lightning speed all over the world. In the early morning after 2,118 polling stations throughout the country hospitably opened the doors for voters the world’s leading news agencies – BBC, Reuters, Associated Press, Xinhua, ITAR-TASS, Interfax, RIA-Novosti and many others started to cover the news marked ‘urgently’.

The popular foreign TV channels broadcast the video reportages about the progress of the parliamentary elections with the record high turnout of voters in the news blocks. Thus, the Russian TV channel broadcast the video reportage with the updated information on the results of the voting at polling station 2120 opened at the Embassy of Turkmenistan in the Russian Federation in Moscow.

The voters who had spent many hours to get to Moscow gave interviews willingly focusing on the significance of this political action aimed at further democratization of the Turkmen society and establishing genuine democracy and transparency.

In common opinion, opening 27 polling stations abroad – at the diplomatic representations of Turkmenistan brightly evidenced the ongoing democratic processes, the respect to the rights and freedoms of citizens secured by the fundamental law of Turkmenistan – the Constitution.

The foreign mass media quite positively mentioned about another innovation – drawing about 60 observers and experts representing the United Nations, ODIHR/OSCE and the CIS accredited by the Central Commission for Elections and Referenda to monitor the election campaign and the parliamentary elections.

The CIS observation mission involved in monitoring the election campaign and the voting procedure issued the official statement recognizing the December 14, 2008 parliamentary elections as free and transparent held in compliance with the current national election law and universally recognized norms of international law. The results of voting at the polling stations opened throughout the country were of particular interest to the foreign diplomatic missions accredited to Turkmenistan which noted that the parliamentary elections in Turkmenistan were held in a very positive manner.

Some news agencies reported that this year’s parliamentary elections were viewed in Turkmenistan as well as abroad as historic noting that the elections took place in the epoch of Great Revival and in the framework of the legal and constitutional reforms initiated by President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.

In particular, Коммерсантъ reported that the elections to the Mejlis of IV convocation became by some parameters the ever first of such kind in the history of independent Turkmenistan. The on-line newspaper wrote that “having initiated the constitutional amendments this September President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov not only changed the procedure of election to the Parliament and doubled its membership but also restored the certain powers of the supreme lawmaking body.”

The other internet publications adhere to this opinion noting that the elections were called and held on the basis of the considerably updated legal basis supplemented with the provisions improving the electoral system. Focusing on the irreversibility of the democratic reforms going on in Turkmenistan in the best national traditions of the sovereignty of people the journalists and analysts spotlight the determining role of the Turkmen leader who has offered profound incentives to this process.

The exceptionally positive reaction of the world’s news agencies to the major social and political event in Turkmenistan vividly and objectively testified to that the parliamentary elections had reflected the depth of the democratic reforms going on in Turkmenistan as well as indicated civic maturity, unity and solidarity of the Turkmen people, secured the development of the fair, humane state and society.