Kyrgyzstani constitutional referendum, 2007
Encyclopedia
A constitutional referendum was held in Kyrgyzstan
on 21 October 2007, after the constitutional crisis caused by amendments passed since the Tulip Revolution
in 2005 (in November and December 2006) being invalidated by the Constitutional Court of Kyrgyzstan on 14 September 2007; in response, President
Kurmanbek Bakiyev
had called the referendum on 19 September 2007. Furthermore, a change of electoral law was also proposed from first past the post to party-list voting, a change which is likely to see many of the independent politician and smaller parties eliminated from parliament.
There were two separate questions which both passed: one asking for the approval of the new constitution, the other asking for the approval of the new electoral law. Analysts assumed that there would be early parliamentary elections in 2008 following the referendum, especially as Bakiyev had also announced that he would be founding a political party. Bakiyev called early elections for December 2007 immediately after preliminary results indicated that more than 75% of voters had approved the changes, with an official turnout of 80%.
According to observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE), there were reports of numerous irregularities, observers being obstructed, and ballot stuffing
; it also said that popular awareness of what was at stake in the referendum was low and called into question the claimed high turnout rate. The United States
embassy also had concerns and said that the vote fell short of international standards.
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
on 21 October 2007, after the constitutional crisis caused by amendments passed since the Tulip Revolution
Tulip Revolution
The Tulip Revolution or First Kyrgyz Revolution refers to the overthrow of President Askar Akayev and his government in the Central Asian republic of Kyrgyzstan after the parliamentary elections of February 27 and of March 13, 2005...
in 2005 (in November and December 2006) being invalidated by the Constitutional Court of Kyrgyzstan on 14 September 2007; in response, President
President of Kyrgyzstan
The President of Kyrgyzstan is the head of state and the highest official of Kyrgyzstan. The President, according to the constitution, "is the symbol of the unity of people and state power, and is the guarantor of the Constitution of the Kyrgyz Republic, and of an individual and citizen." The...
Kurmanbek Bakiyev
Kurmanbek Bakiyev
Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev is a politician who served as the second President of Kyrgyzstan, from 2005 to 2010...
had called the referendum on 19 September 2007. Furthermore, a change of electoral law was also proposed from first past the post to party-list voting, a change which is likely to see many of the independent politician and smaller parties eliminated from parliament.
There were two separate questions which both passed: one asking for the approval of the new constitution, the other asking for the approval of the new electoral law. Analysts assumed that there would be early parliamentary elections in 2008 following the referendum, especially as Bakiyev had also announced that he would be founding a political party. Bakiyev called early elections for December 2007 immediately after preliminary results indicated that more than 75% of voters had approved the changes, with an official turnout of 80%.
According to observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press and fair elections...
(OSCE), there were reports of numerous irregularities, observers being obstructed, and ballot stuffing
Ballot stuffing
Ballot stuffing is the illegal act of one person submitting multiple ballots during a vote in which only one ballot per person is permitted. The name originates from the earliest days of this practice in which people literally did stuff more than one ballot in a ballot box at the same time...
; it also said that popular awareness of what was at stake in the referendum was low and called into question the claimed high turnout rate. The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
embassy also had concerns and said that the vote fell short of international standards.