The representative of Uzbekistan highlighted that good water governance is an important

field of ecological security and is being increasingly raised on the global agenda. In
particular, food security is of growing concern due to population growth, climate change and
environmental degradation. The representative conveyed that Uzbekistan has implemented
comprehensive agrarian reforms, including Integrated Water Resources Management
(IWRM) and new systems of water distribution. He warned that the drying out of the Aral
Sea is having a profound effect on the region, and informed that the recent conference
“Development of Co-operation on Mitigation of Ecological Disaster’s Consequences in the
Aral Sea Basin” in October 2014 in Urgench raised 3 billion USD for local and regional
projects. He stressed that in Central Asia, proper water management is the basis for the
wellbeing of 60 million people, the lack of it can create security risks and negative effects in
particular for the downstream areas.

The figure of the incumbent dominated a political landscape without genuine opposition in the
29 March presidential election in Uzbekistan, election observers sent by the OSCE Office for
Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) said in a statement issued today. “Despite a
clear constitutional limit of two consecutive presidential terms, the Central Election
Commission registered the incumbent as a candidate. This was in contravention of the rule of
law and raises doubts about the Commission’s independence,” said Tana de Zulueta, head of
the ODIHR limited election observation mission. The possibility to stand as an independent
candidate has been abolished since the last election, and a number of provisions in the legal
framework for elections contravene OSCE commitments and other international obligations and
standards for democratic elections. Although some previous OSCE/ODIHR ecommendations
have been addressed in regulations, fundamental freedoms of association and expression
remain effectively curtailed, the statement said. “While most of the campaign was premised on
applying the legal provisions for equal treatment of all contestants, including with regard to
access to media and holding meetings, media gave the incumbent a clear advantage,” de
Zulueta said.

The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) today formally opened
an election observation mission for the 26 April early presidential election in Kazakhstan. The
mission is led by Cornelia Jonker and consists of a core team of 12 experts based in Astana and
30 long-term observers who will be deployed throughout the country in teams of two, from 31
March 2015. In addition, ODIHR will request that OSCE participating States provide 400 short-
term observers. The mission will assess this election for its compliance with OSCE commitments
and other international obligations for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation.
Observers will closely monitor candidate and voter registration, campaign activities, the work of
the election administration and relevant governmental bodies, election-related legislation and
its implementation, the media environment and the resolution of election-related disputes. In
the course of its observation, the mission will meet with representatives from state authorities,
political parties and candidates, and with representatives from civil society, the media and the
international community.
The decision not to approve the Amendment to the Law on Health Coverage was a significant
blow to the State administration and could create massive problem in the state’s budget. The
budget was balanced this year assuming that hundreds of millions of dollars of federal funding
would flow into the hospitals. However, Mr. Jindal didn’t wait for federal approval before he
shifted management. Therefore, the hospitals are now operating under financing plans that
have been rejected. Privatization deals for the New Orleans, Lafayette and Houma hospitals
took effect in June. The Lake Charles hospital was closed. Its services shifted to a nearby private
hospital. State health department officials said there is no short-term budget impact to the
hospitals. Department of Health’s Secretary Kathy Kliebert said in a written statement that the
state will appeal the decision through an administrative process. Property leases between the
private managers and the state hospital system are separate from cooperative endeavor
agreements outlining public-private management partnerships.
The election administration functioned efficiently. While the work of lower-level commissions
enjoyed public confidence, in the current political context the process for appointing the
members of the permanent National Election Commission was not transparent. "Voting took
place in a calm and positive atmosphere," said Baroness Jenny Hilton, the head of the OSCE PA
delegation. "Unfortunately, minorities, including the large Roma population, were largely
invisible during yesterday's election." The candidate registration process was inclusive, with 18
party and joint party lists registered for the nationwide proportional system and 1,531
candidates registered for the contests in the 106 single-member constituencies. Formal media
diversity is provided by numerous electronic and print media outlets. New regulations led to
the absence of political advertising on nationwide commercial television and media coverage of
the campaign on television channels monitored was biased in favour of the ruling party.
Combined with a significant amount of government advertising, this undermined equal media
access for contestants. The introduction of new campaign finance legislation was a step
forward, but certain areas remain unregulated. Other issues, including a lack of monitoring of
contestants' financial activities during the campaign, limited the transparency and
accountability of the process.
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ranko Krivokapic has said that security in South East Europe is
still a "burning issue," stemming not from the threat of ethnic conflict but from incomplete
democratization and organized crime. Addressing the NATO Parliamentary Assembly's Rose-Roth
Seminar in Sarajevo on 18 March, Krivokapic said: "Threats to security in the region nowadays are
different from those that led to tragic conflicts, but are by no means less real. Today the key to security
in the region is in the full, consistent, genuine democratization of our societies, countries and
institutions. That said, organized crime and corruption is perhaps the most obvious threat, as war
criminals have been replaced by organized criminals." Krivokapic, who is also Speaker of the
Montenegrin Parliament, warned against regarding the fight against organized crime and corruption as
homework that South Eastern European countries need to complete to get closer to Euro-Atlantic
structures."If so, that fight is sentenced to failure. Victory will only come as a result of our true
recognition that law and justice should be a cornerstone of our societies, our lives and our overall
worldview,".