Parliamentary polls in Nagorno Karabakh enclave

The News International, Pakistan
June 20 2005

STEPANAKERT: Voters went to parliamentary polls on Sunday in the
self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno Karabakh, a mostly ethnic
Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan, amid strong opposition from
Azeri authorities. Seven parties and 185 candidates were vying for
places in Nagorno Karabakh’s fourth parliament, with two thirds
of the parliament’s 33 seats to be elected directly and one third
under a proportional system. Nagorno Karabakh’s authorities have
said the vote is a chance to prove to the world the territory’s
independence. “I voted for stability, independence and prosperity,”
Nagorno Karabakh’s leader, Arkady Gukasyan, said after casting his
ballot. It was essential, Gukasyan said earlier, that the vote come
up to European standards in order to avoid harming Nagorno Karabakh’s
image and “the process of peaceful settlement with Azerbaijan”.