Pre-Election Delegation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) led by Andres Herkel issued a statement on the results of its mission to Azerbaijan.
Members of the Delegation said at the press conference on Thursday that they have noted improvements in the country that should create conditions for democratic and fair elections, APA reports. Those improvements took account of a number of recommendations made by the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe, but not all of them were fully addressed, said in the statement. “It nevertheless admitted that some key issues such as equitable representation in electoral commissions or fairness in conducting the campaign, are more the matter of electoral practice than that of the letter of the law. It is heartened by the assurances it received from top Azerbaijani representatives that their goal is to have an orderly and well administered election that will comply with European standards”.
Being concerned about a presumed public disinterest, the Delegation firmly wished that the electorate will have an increasing interest in the campaign. Though with seven presidential candidates registered, a plurality of choices and competitiveness are to be expected, the decision by the five opposition parties not to participate in the vote was most unfortunate, said the Delegation.
“”Even if a political party and its leaders fail to see clear prospects of getting voted into power or they feel that their democratic rights are being limited or even violated, they should nonetheless participate in the electoral race in the interests of their followers. In this connection, the Delegation urges all sides of the political spectrum, including those not participating in the elections, to act responsibly and engage in a meaningful dialogue with each other. All political forces, whatever their differences, should go beyond mutual recriminations, addressing instead the issues of substance in a constructive interplay”.

Mr. Andres Herkel (head of Delegation, Estonia, Group of the European People’s party), Mr. Indrek Saar (Estonia, Socialist Group), Mr. Mevlut Chavushoglu (Turkey, European Democrat Group), Mr. Paul Wille (Belgium, Alliance of liberals and democrats for Europe), Mr. Hakki Keskin (Germany, Group of the Unified European Left) were involved in the mission.

A full 30-member PACE observer delegation will arrive in Azerbaijan in October to observe the actual voting. /APA/