Twelve political parties will be running for the Jogorku Kenesh (national parliament) in the snap parliamentary election scheduled to culminate on December 16. The republican Central Electoral Commission published the list of the parties permitted in the race yesterday.

The list inevitably includes the president's Ak Jol and other loyal political parties. Along with them, however, it includes Ar-Namys headed by ex-premier Felix Kulov, Asaba under ex-deputy Azimbek Beknazarov, and Omurbek Tekebayev's Ata-Meken.

Over 100 political parties are registered in Kyrgyzstan, and 50 or every second of them initially intended to apply for the privilege to run for the parliament. All in all, 22 political parties submitted the necessary documents to the Central Electoral Commission.

Parties denied participation in the parliamentary race were undone by the lists of candidates compiled and submitted for registration. The new Election Code adopted at the recent referendum set certain requirements to be met. For example, a list of candidates from any given party is not supposed to include over 100 names. It must include but 70% of candidates of one gender, at least 15% candidates under 35 years, and at least 15% of representatives of non-titular nations.

Motherland's list of candidates invoked particularly serious charges. The Central Electoral Commission decided that some candidates on the list - mostly ethnic Uzbeks - could be citizens of Uzbekistan. Motherland leaders deny all allegations. Ulugbek Abdusalamov of the Motherland Political Council told Ferghana.Ru that "it was 20-25 days ago that we were first informed that our list of candidates might be turned down..."

"As a matter of fact, this decision was first run by other political forces. Media outlets present our party as mono-ethnic and even give its name in the Uzbek language. In the meantime, we have representatives of more than 15 ethnic groups in Motherland," Abdusalamov said. "It follows that the decision to deny registration is based on guesswork and innuendo and not on hard facts."

Abdusalamov does not think that a complaint to the court will solve the problem. "The court may even choose to prosecute the guilty but what if it does? It won't get us a place in the parliamentary race," he said. "We submitted documents on November 16, but the application was considered at nearly 6 p.m. yesterday, bare minutes before the period of registration was up. It prevented us from filing a lawsuit because the campaign is officially on already."

The parties permitted to run for the Jogorku Kenesh began their campaigns today. No information is available at this point concerning plans of the other parties whose lists of candidates were denied registration.

The parties permitted to run for the Jogorku kenesh:

1. Socialist Party Ata-Meken;

2. Social Democratic Party;

3. Communist Party;

4. Party of the Uninvolved Aalam;

5. Ar-Namys (Dignity);

6. National Revival Party Asaba;

7. Democratic Party of Women and Youths New Force;

8. Erkindik;

9. People's Party Ak Jol;

10. Democratic Party Turan;

11. Erkin Kyrgyzstan;

12. Vox Populi;

Whatever party got the majority of 90 seats on the Jogorku Kenesh will nominate the premier and form the government. Without the majority in the hands of any political party, the president himself will choose one to form the government.

Political parties need to poll at least 5% votes and no less than 0.5% in every one of seven regions and in the cities of Bishkek and Osh.