OSCE / ODIHR Observation Mission issues first interim report on parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan

"The Central Election Commission has been very active in making preparations for these elections. The CEC has elaborated numerous rules and regulations and launched an extensive voter information and education campaign, including in the media. Initial training for lower-level commissions was conducted in July and a second series devoted to election-day procedures started at the beginning of October. CEC sessions are open to the media and observers. An agenda is available at the start of sessions, and decisions are made public through the state-funded media and the CEC's website," the observation mission says.

“The period prior to the start of the official election campaign was characterized by a lack of visible activities of political parties. This was partly due to the limited financial resources of opposition parties”.

“While there are several television stations with national coverage in Azerbaijan, citizens have very limited access to diverse political views in the broadcast media. This is most importantly due to a de facto government monopoly on television, with all national TV channels – including the state broadcaster AzTV and the public broadcaster ITV – presenting mainly the activities of the authorities and rarely showing opposition leaders and their views. The print media is more diverse”, said the mission in its interim report.

“The OSCE/ODIHR EOM has received several reports about alleged intimidation of opposition and independent candidates and their authorized representatives by employees of the local executive authorities”.

“Women are under-represented in the political life of Azerbaijan. In these elections, 13% of the nominated candidates are women, as are 13 per cent of the registered candidates. The ruling party increased the number of women among its candidates significantly in comparison to 2005, from 13 to 19 (17% of registered YAP candidates). However, the number of women among opposition parties’ candidates remains very low. The APFP–Musavat bloc has only five women”.

“Minority-related issues do not appear to be a significant factor in the upcoming elections. Members of national minorities are represented among the candidates across all main political parties”.

The OSCE/ODIHR EOM opened in Baku on 28 September, with a 16-member core team and 22 long-term observers who are deployed to ten locations throughout the country.


/APA/