The parties which get training from such NGOs are not shy about cloaking themselves in the legitimacy they feel their training partners may give them, however slight. That’s why NDI & IRI appear on ERK’s website. Ruling parties do the same, except through state-owned media. Getting used in this manner simply goes with the territory. Striking this balance is a high priority for any NDI & IRI political party programs.

With few exceptions, there are no litmus tests for which party gets training. I never trained Communists with NDI. That was my one red line I never crossed. As for ‘Islamist’ parties, I know that USAID requires recepients of US training funds in the West Bank to sign a declaration against support for terrorism…I don’t know if this applies in Uzbekistan. It is a controversial requirement, and often results in worthy recipients refusing on principle to sign a US requirement for funds, even if the applicant indeed does not support terrorism. Whatever the local requirements, I am sure the calculus in Uzbekistan is made on all the available information.

It’s easy to cherry pick the less attractive aspects of certain political parties in order to argue a certain point of view. It is much harder to actually train political parties…especially in a place like Uzbekistan.