15 October 2008, 14:13
Norwegian Helsinki Committee: Azerbaijan lacks room for free elections
The presidential election in Azerbaijan are taking place in the atmosphere, where free and fair elections are impossible, runs the statement of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee (Den Norske Helsingforsko Mite), now at disposal of the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.
Main preconditions for fair elections are public debates, free press and equal terms for all political forces of the country. "Azerbaijan has nothing of the case," runs the statement.
The observers mark regretfully that the major opposition has refused to taken part in the election, and their decision to boycott the event is understandable; the observers emphasize that for many years the oppositional forces work in the conditions of prosecution and were granted only a conditional right to participate in political processes.
"At the same time, none of the elections held during the latest decade were just and fair. Falsifications of outcomes and inadequate attitude to pro-governmental forces and oppositions have been widespread. The government has failed to set up minimal conditions for public meetings, which is a breach of the fundamental law of any elections - the freedoms of assembly," the statement further runs.
"It becomes clear that the incumbent President Ilham Aliev will be proclaimed the winner of the election. By using this opportunity, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee has addressed Ilham Aliev calling him to take all the necessary steps for making the society open and allowing the press to exist freely," the statement emphasizes.
At the same time, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee urges the international community to strengthen the pressure on the government of Azerbaijan with the aim to release all political prisoners, ensure the work of the free press, and create equal terms for all political forces.
Author: Faik Medzhid, CK correspondent
