Brussels, 11/10/2013 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 10 October, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton and Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Füle called on Azerbaijan to address the “serious shortcomings” identified in the preliminary conclusions of the OSCE and the ODIHR concerning the presidential elections the previous day.
The conclusions reveal that “significant problems were observed throughout all stages of election day processes, and identify serious shortcomings - including limitations on the freedoms of expression, assembly and association that did not guarantee a level playing field for candidates - which need to be addressed in order for Azerbaijan to fully meet its international commitments”, the spokespersons for Ashton and Füle state in a joint press release. They added that the citizens who have filed election appeals need to be provided with sufficient guarantees of effective redress.
In the view Ashton and Füle, “the strong turnout in the election demonstrates the commitment of the people of Azerbaijan to the democratic process”. While noting the statements of the delegations from the European Parliament and from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Ashton and Füle hailed the resolve of the Azerbaijani authorities to have a large presence of national and international observers.
Ashton and Füle encouraged the authorities to consider the recommendations of the international community “with a view to continuing to develop the path towards democracy and the rule of law”, and they say they look forward to continuing their collaboration with Azerbaijan.
In the view of the delegations from the European Parliament and Council of Europe, the electoral process is far from perfect, but it is a beginning. In their joint statement they say that, on the whole, around the day of the election, the electoral process was fair, free and transparent.
The delegations state that the electoral procedures on the eve of the elections, and on election day, were conducted in a peaceful and professional manner, and the delegations add that on the day of the elections they did not witness any proof of intimidation against the electors. However, while the electoral debate was “more open” in comparison with previous elections, “freedom of expression remains a serious concern”.
The president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev from the New Azerbaijan party, was re-elected with 84.6% of the vote, ahead of Jamil Hasanli from the National Council of Democratic Forces, who garnered 5.53% of the vote. (CG/transl.fl)