Kyrgyzstan's President Roza Otunbaeva greets OSCE PA President Petros Efthymiou in Bishkek.BISHKEK, 17 February 2011 – The new parliament of the Kyrgyz Republic needs clear government oversight powers to be an effective model in the region, OSCE PA President Petros Efthymiou said today upon concluding a two-day visit to Bishkek.

Traveling with a delegation of parliamentarians representing five countries, President Efthymiou expressed support for the 120-member parliament established by popular vote last October. Presidential elections are expected to be held this autumn.

“We support the efforts in the Kyrgyz Republic to establish a stable multi-party parliamentary system,” President Efthymiou said. “This is an ambitious undertaking, but the thirst for democracy that we have clearly seen here in Kyrgyzstan will serve the country well, and will help foster constructive inter-communal relations.”

“We are visiting Bishkek to express our solidarity with our fellow parliamentarians at this important time. All of our governments should be subject to effective oversight by parliament,” President Efthymiou said. “Such oversight helps ensure efficiency and accountability, it helps fight corruption, and most importantly, it helps earn the trust of our populations in their government.”

The delegation met with President Roza Otunbaeva, Speaker Akhmatbek Keldibekov of the Kyrgyz Parliament, Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbaev and held a roundtable discussion with Members of Parliament, including Kanatbek Isaev, Head of the Kyrgyz Delegation to the OSCE PA, government officials and civil society to focus on ways the OSCE PA can help strengthen the parliament.

“Our meetings in Bishkek underscored the important role civil society can play in Kyrgyzstan and throughout the region to inform parliamentarians, strengthen democracy and ensure implementation of necessary reforms,” said OSCE PA Vice-President Pia Christmas-Moeller (Denmark).

An open and transparent approach with effective checks and balances is crucial to the success of the parliamentary system in Kyrgyzstan, the delegation noted. They called upon parliamentarians to further increase their outreach to constituents and civil society, to ensure that the parliament remains an effective representative body.

The OSCE parliamentarians welcomed the opportunity to exchange experiences with their colleagues from the parliament of Kyrgyzstan. They encouraged continued active participation of Kyrgyzstan's delegation in the OSCE's Parliamentary Assembly. The Kyrgyz parliament confirmed their intention to send a multi-party delegation to the PA's Winter Meeting in Vienna next week.

Ambassador Andrew Tesoriere, Head of the OSCE Centre in Bishkek supported the delegation. “The issues discussed during Mr. Efthymiou's visit resulted in identifying practical ways in which the OSCE PA can support the strengthening of parliamentary oversight of public services, internal parliamentary procedures and public outreach."

The delegation included:

• Mr. Petros Efthymiou, President of the OSCE PA (Member of Parliament, Greece)
• Ms. Pia Christmas-Moeller, Vice-President of the OSCE PA (Member of Parliament, Denmark)
• Mr. Serghiy Shevchuk, Rapporteur of the OSCE PA's Second General Committee (Member of Parliament, Ukraine)
• Mr. Tonino Picula, Rapporteur of the OSCE PA's First General (Member of Parliament, Croatia)
• Ms. Viola von Cramon (Member of Parliament, Germany)The visit was supported by the OSCE Centre in Bishkek.