PACE PRESIDENT: ELECTION ‘REAL OPPORTUNITY’ TO PROVE ADHERENCE TO DEMOCRACY

AzerNews, Azerbaijan Aug 25 2005

President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE) Rene van Der Linden has cited the importance of Azerbaijan’s
observing its commitments to ensure democratic situation on the
eve of the November parliament poll. “The upcoming elections
are a real opportunity for Azerbaijan to show its adherence to
democratic principles”, he told a news conference on the results
of his visit to Baku on Tuesday. Linden, who has met with Azeri
officials, representatives of political parties and non-governmental
organizations, said the election was in focus at his meetings. He
said that to ensure the transparency of elections, all NGOs should be
allowed to observe their conduct. Azerbaijan’s laws ban NGOs with
over 30% foreign capital from monitoring the vote. “I sensed that
the government agrees with allowing all NGOs ensuring transparency
of their funding to monitor the poll. The Council of Europe is ready
to provide its assistance in this area”, Linden said.

Linden said that one of the key objectives is to punish those
who gave way to violations of law during the 2003 presidential
elections in Azerbaijan. “The issue should be solved prior to the
elections to raise public trust on the poll.” He emphasized that
the independence of media should be ensured and favorable conditions
provided for opposition’s access to television. The PACE president
said the Azerbaijani government may not accept the CE proposals
on democratization of the pre-election climate. “In every country,
the way elections are held and their rules are determined not by the
CE, but the government, political parties and NGOs. The Council of
Europe, on its end, assesses the extent of their compliance with its
principles… In any case, we will voice our harsh position if the
elections fall short of international standards.” Touching upon the
Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Upper Garabagh, the PACE president
said that it should be resolved peacefully. “Peace is the only
option. If Azerbaijan wants to enter the European family, it must
resolve the conflict peacefully.” Linden said that he discussed
issues relating to the conflict settlement both in Azerbaijan and
Armenia during his visit to the region. He said that during talks
with Armenian officials, he stated that ‘living in isolation’
from Azerbaijan and Turkey, the two powerful regional countries,
is unacceptable. Linden said that if either Azerbaijan or Armenia
consider resorting to ways other than peace talks to settle the
conflict, the international community will come out strongly against
the decision, as both countries assumed commitment to a peaceful
resolution upon their admission to the Council of Europe. The PACE
president said that the international community should intensify
pressures on both sides to resolve the conflict. He voiced a hope that
the ongoing negotiations will complete successfully. Upon arrival
in Baku, Linden told journalists that favorable conditions have been
created to settle the Garabagh conflict. “We should take advantage
of this and find a way to resolve the conflict.”