UNITED NATIONS – Only several weeks after violent ethnic clashes killed hundreds of people in Kyrgyzstan, the country is now on its way to create Central Asia’s first parliamentary democracy, and the international community is mainly applauding this step.

The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of the Regional Center for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia, Ambassador Miroslav Jenča, highlighted Kyrgyzstan’s smooth operation of its referendum that was held on Sunday. It resulted in a majority vote in favor of the new constitution with over 90 percent of the people approving it.

Jenča visited Kyrgyzstan during the constitutional referendum and, at a meeting with Interim President Rosa Otunbayeva, he expressed his appreciation, saying the referendum “was conducted smoothly and without major incidents in such difficult conditions.”

“The referendum is a decisive step towards political stability and the restoration of constitutional order and political legitimacy,” Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Chairperson-in-Office Kanat Saudabayev said, stating that the referendum only marks the beginning of Krygyzstan’s democratic, social, and economic development.

“The OSCE is keenly interested in seeing the situation in Kyrgyzstan return to a constructive framework, and calls on all the participating States and international bodies to develop a plan of large-scale assistance for the country. We believe timely, effective and co-ordinated actions by the international community will become an important factor in stabilizing the political situation, maintaining regional security and co-operation, ensuring sustainable economic development and fully protecting democratic foundations in Kyrgyzstan,” Saudabayev added.

Jenča also noted the Kyrgyz people’s aspiration for peace, stability and democracy, despite suffering from the recent violent demonstrations.

“The referendum is an important step towards promoting the rule of law and establishing legitimate and democratically elected government in the country,” Jenča said.

The UN has provided technical support to the referendum process and constitutional reform, and they will continue to advise the Government on constitutional reform, building of democratic institutions and organization of the general election planned for the fall of this year.