Kazakhstan Ambassador to Tehran Ashkant T. Orazbay on Wednesday in a press conference in Tehran highlighted the significance of the upcoming presidential election in Kazakh history.

By: F. Taherpoor

He said Kazakh President Nazarbayev stepped down in mid-March to let new blood be injected into his country’s political climate. Since the independence day, Mr. Nazarbayev ruled the country almost for 27 years.

Mr. Orazbay said that June 9 presidential election will be important in the history of Kazakhstan as this time opposition leader is among the hopefuls to challenge the ruling party.

He said, “June 9 is a most important moment, not least because a head of state can take the country in a particular direction and set tasks and priorities for government that can have an impact on the country and beyond. It is also the first time in almost thirty years that a new president of Kazakhstan will be elected.”

Mr. Orazbay went on to say, “The election is promising to be the most competitive and diverse in Kazakhstan’s history as an independent nation. A total of seven candidates have  been endorsed by the Central Election Commission. This list includes the first female candidate to run for President – Daniya Yespayeva from the AkZhol Party. It is for the first time a female hopeful to challenge their rivals. ”

He added, “Over many years Kazakhstan has taken concrete steps to improve gender equality and to promote women’s role in business and politics. We are now witnessing the fruits of this labor. In addition to Ms. Yespayeva, the Senate Chairwoman as well as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Science are also female, as are approximately a quarter of the members of the parliament.”

Mr. Orazbay  also asserted, “ Caretaker President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev promised that the election will be transparent  and to the highest expected standards. The country can already offer concrete examples of the sincerity of this pledge. For, example, presidential candidate Amirzhan Kossanov has been in opposition to the government for around two decades. He, and all candidates, are now openly campaigning in the hope of securing people’s votes.’

He reiterated that Kazakhstan has always welcomed observers and their constructive feedback during previous elections and this time more than 100 international observers from ten international organizations as well as foreign countries, are expected to be in Kazakhstan for the election.

The Kazakh diplomat noted that Kazakh government has officially invited the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights  (ODIHR) of the Organization for Security and Cooperation  in Europe (OSCE), the Commonwealth of Independent States and numerous other organizations.

Mr Orazbay further said, “The June 9 election is not just important to Kazakhstan but to our neighbors and partners all over the world. As is known, Kazakhstan has been actively participating in global affairs, including, most recently, the resolution of the Syrian conflict.|

The veteran Kazakh diplomat who speaks Persian fluently said that the results of the presidential election will be officially confirmed by June 16.