BAKU, 10 October 2013 – The 9 October presidential election in Azerbaijan
was undermined by limitations on the freedoms of expression, assembly and
association that did not guarantee a level playing field for candidates, the
international observers concluded in a statement released today. Continued
allegations of candidate and voter intimidation and a restrictive media
environment marred the campaign.
Significant problems were observed throughout all stages of election day
processes and underscored the serious shortcomings that need to be addressed
in order for Azerbaijan to fully meet its OSCE commitments for genuine and
democratic elections, the statement said.
“I was pleased by the good organization of the election and the number of
candidates who took part, as well as the peaceful atmosphere on election
day,” said Michel Voisin, the Special Co-ordinator who led the OSCE
short-term election observation mission. “Regretfully, however, we have to
underline shortcomings in areas like the counting of ballots, and I would
hope that the Azerbaijani authorities will make a real effort to bring such
areas in line with OSCE commitments.”
Ten candidates were registered for the election, while four individuals were
denied registration when the CEC ruled they had failed to collect the
requisite number of valid signatures, and the courts ruled against their
subsequent challenges of the signature-verification criteria. The authorities
approved only 152 venues for campaign rallies, thereby limiting citizens’
freedom of assembly, the observers concluded.
The Central Election Commission generally administered preparations for the
election efficiently and held regular sessions open to observers and media.
Nevertheless, the formula for structuring all election commissions gives
pro-government forces a de facto majority. As a result of this, opposition
representatives expressed a lack of confidence in the election
administration, the statement said.
Overall, candidates were provided with insufficient access to the media.
Distinctly disproportionate coverage of the incumbent President during the
campaign period contributed to the lack of a level playing field among
candidates. Detentions, criminal prosecutions, and testimony of physical
attacks and other forms of pressure on journalists negatively impacted the
media environment, the observers concluded.
Despite recent amendments, the majority of previous ODIHR recommendations
remain unaddressed in the law, the statement says, including key provisions
related to the composition of election commissions and candidate
registration.
“I welcome the high turnout, and I was happy to see so many people who were
eager to cast their vote,” said Doris Barnett, the Head of the OSCE
Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) delegation. “At the same time, the report
underlines serious challenges. I would urge the authorities to support the
democratic aspirations of Azerbaijan’s citizens by swiftly addressing the
issue we highlighted.”
The review of election appeals lacked impartiality and failed to provide
appellants sufficient guarantees of effective redress, the statement says,
and the condensed timeline for the conduct of the election was insufficient
to allow for legal remedy.
“Looking at the facts our mission has gathered over the six weeks we have
been observing the electoral process, the stark reality is that this process
has fallen well short of OSCE commitments in in most areas,” said Tana de
Zulueta, the Head of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) long-term election observation mission. “The
limitations placed on the fundamental freedoms of assembly, association, and
expression, the lack of a level playing field, the allegations of
intimidation all came in the lead up to an election day that our observers
found to be seriously flawed.”
A high number of observers assessed the situation in polling stations on
election day as negative, with significant problems coming in the opening,
voting and counting procedures. They reported clear indications of ballot box
stuffing in 37 polling stations, and the counting was assessed negatively in
an unprecedented 58 per cent of the stations observed.