AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH KYRGYZ SPEAKER OF PARLIAMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L BISHKEK 001178 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (GORKOWSKI) E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/21/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR KG SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH KYRGYZ SPEAKER OF PARLIAMENT REF: A. BISHKEK 710 ¶B. BISHKEK 1135 Classified By: Ambassador Tatiana C. Gfoeller for Reasons 1.4 (b) and ( d). ¶1. (C) On November 19, Ambassador made an introductory call on Speaker of Parliament, Aitibai Tagayev. Tagayev defended the recently passed, restrictive law on religion (ref B), saying that the law had been adopted "with the interests of the Kyrgyz citizens in mind." Tagayev also lauded passage of a new tax code, which he said cut the number of taxes. Tagayev would not elaborate on legislative priorities for the remainder of the year, nor would he discuss possible changes to the law on adoptions. Tagayev is an unimpressive figure: he has only a cursory understanding of recent legislation, and he is clearly uncomfortable discussing any substantive issues. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Tagayev, who was elected on the slate of the President's Ak Jol party, opened the meeting by describing the December 2007 Parliamentary elections and the resulting make-up of Parliament along the lines of political party, gender, and ethnicity as a step forward for democracy in Kyrgyzstan. Tagayev lauded the accomplishments of Parliament, citing the passage of the tax code that cut the number of different types of taxes in half from sixteen to eight, and reduced the VAT rate from twenty to twelve per cent. (Note: Tagayev gave the same tax code speech during a meeting with the previous ambassador in July. Ref A. Business leaders have been critical of the tax code, which they believe will increase their tax obligations. End Note.) When asked about legislative priorities for the remainder of 2008, Tagayev said that Parliament was preparing plans for December, but he was unable to elaborate. ¶3. (C) Ambassador pressed Tagayev for answers regarding current legislation but received limited and somewhat uninformed responses. When asked about the draft law on adoptions, Tagayev only noted that it was currently being reviewed and would be addressed in the coming year. When further pressed by Ambassador about the recent stoppage of approvals for adoption by Americans, Tagayev said that local parents are "refusing to give up their children for adoption." ¶4. (C) Regarding the law on religion recently passed by Parliament, Ambassador asked how the law will balance the protection of religious freedom with the prevention of extremist activity. Tagayev said that the law was passed only after two readings by Parliament, discussions of OSCE recommendations, and numerous roundtables. Therefore, he claimed, "the law was adopted with the interests of Kyrgyz citizens in mind." Unfortunately, he added, they were unable to adopt all of the OSCE's recommendations. Tagayev claimed (inaccurately) that the law's new registration provisions -- requiring a minimum of 200 members for a religious organization to be registered -- were less restrictive than the requirements in neighboring states. ¶5. (C) Comment: Tagayev was either unable or unwilling to hold substantive discussions on legislative issues. He preferred to share only very basic information about the physical make-up of Parliament or legislation. When the Ambassador pushed gently for a more substantive discussion, Tagayev abruptly ended the meeting, offering his "best wishes for the American people." Tagayev remains a thoroughly unimpressive figure and does not appear capable of calling the shots in Parliament on his own. GFOELLER