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AZERBAIJAN'S PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS CRITICIZED BY WEST, OPPOSITION
by Asbarez
Monday, November 8th, 2010
BAKU (Reuters)-The party of President Ilham Aliyev has claimed victory
in a parliamentary election in oil-producing Azerbaijan, but opposition
parties condemned the vote as rigged and western monitors have
criticized as failing to make any "meaningful" democratic progress.
Victory will further consolidate Aliyev's grip on the ex-Soviet
republic, cushioned against calls for reform by its strategic
importance to the West as an oil and gas exporter and transit route
for US military operations in Afghanistan.
Official preliminary results put the ruling New Azerbaijan Party
ahead in 74 out of 125 constituencies up for grabs.
Independent candidates considered loyal to the government, some
publicly backed by the ruling party, were ahead in dozens of other
seats.
"I am certain of our victory. We are very satisfied with our result,"
New Azerbaijan Party secretary Ali Akhmedov told a news conference
after polls closed. "I can say that voting was free and fair."
But a Western diplomat who observed voting said: "It was an absolute
sham."
He cited "egregious irregularities" including ballot stuffing and
intimidation of public sector workers.
The official turnout edged just over 50% after a lackluster campaign
with few public rallies that received only limited media coverage.
Aliyev has steadily firmed up his control over the mainly Muslim
country of 9 million people since succeeding his father, long-serving
leader Heydar Aliyev, in 2003.
He is an ally of the United States in a country valued for its
strategic importance, bordering Iran, Turkey and Russia at the
threshold of Central Asia.
Voters cast ballots under portraits and busts of Heydar, the focus
of a personality cult in the seven years since his death.
Ilham Aliyev's rule has coincided with an oil-fuelled economic boom,
spawning rapid construction in the capital Baku and the emergence of
an opulent jet set. Critics say the Baku facelift masks a widening gap
between rich and poor, and a steady shrinking of democratic freedoms.
Monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) will issue their assessment on Monday. Prior to the vote, they
expressed concern over reports of intimidation and the disqualification
of candidates.
The opposition has frequently accused the West of muting its criticism
for fear of losing out to Russia in the battle for Azerbaijan's oil
and gas in the Caspian Sea, key to Europe's hopes of reducing its
energy dependence on Moscow.
"It's unlikely my vote will make any difference," said 41-year-old
Vladislav Semenov. "The same people with a thirst for profit will
end up in parliament, far removed from the ordinary people."
Opposition Musavat party leader Isa Gambar said the vote "resembled
the elections of the late Soviet period". Popular Front leader Ali
Kerimli decried "mass falsification".
President Aliyev did not speak to media when he voted shortly after
polls opened to the national anthem.
Western diplomats are unnerved by a 90-percent increase in military
spending ordered by Aliyev for 2011. Azerbaijan has been locked for two
decades in a conflict with neighboring Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
Speaking at the burial on Sunday of two Azeri soldiers repatriated
from Nagorno-Karabakh, Aliyev repeated a threat to take the region
back by force.
"The army of Azerbaijan waits for the order of the commander-in-chief
and is ready to fulfil it," he said. "No one wants war, but we do
not want to conduct negotiations for the sake of negotiations."
From: A. Papazian
by Asbarez
Monday, November 8th, 2010
BAKU (Reuters)-The party of President Ilham Aliyev has claimed victory
in a parliamentary election in oil-producing Azerbaijan, but opposition
parties condemned the vote as rigged and western monitors have
criticized as failing to make any "meaningful" democratic progress.
Victory will further consolidate Aliyev's grip on the ex-Soviet
republic, cushioned against calls for reform by its strategic
importance to the West as an oil and gas exporter and transit route
for US military operations in Afghanistan.
Official preliminary results put the ruling New Azerbaijan Party
ahead in 74 out of 125 constituencies up for grabs.
Independent candidates considered loyal to the government, some
publicly backed by the ruling party, were ahead in dozens of other
seats.
"I am certain of our victory. We are very satisfied with our result,"
New Azerbaijan Party secretary Ali Akhmedov told a news conference
after polls closed. "I can say that voting was free and fair."
But a Western diplomat who observed voting said: "It was an absolute
sham."
He cited "egregious irregularities" including ballot stuffing and
intimidation of public sector workers.
The official turnout edged just over 50% after a lackluster campaign
with few public rallies that received only limited media coverage.
Aliyev has steadily firmed up his control over the mainly Muslim
country of 9 million people since succeeding his father, long-serving
leader Heydar Aliyev, in 2003.
He is an ally of the United States in a country valued for its
strategic importance, bordering Iran, Turkey and Russia at the
threshold of Central Asia.
Voters cast ballots under portraits and busts of Heydar, the focus
of a personality cult in the seven years since his death.
Ilham Aliyev's rule has coincided with an oil-fuelled economic boom,
spawning rapid construction in the capital Baku and the emergence of
an opulent jet set. Critics say the Baku facelift masks a widening gap
between rich and poor, and a steady shrinking of democratic freedoms.
Monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) will issue their assessment on Monday. Prior to the vote, they
expressed concern over reports of intimidation and the disqualification
of candidates.
The opposition has frequently accused the West of muting its criticism
for fear of losing out to Russia in the battle for Azerbaijan's oil
and gas in the Caspian Sea, key to Europe's hopes of reducing its
energy dependence on Moscow.
"It's unlikely my vote will make any difference," said 41-year-old
Vladislav Semenov. "The same people with a thirst for profit will
end up in parliament, far removed from the ordinary people."
Opposition Musavat party leader Isa Gambar said the vote "resembled
the elections of the late Soviet period". Popular Front leader Ali
Kerimli decried "mass falsification".
President Aliyev did not speak to media when he voted shortly after
polls opened to the national anthem.
Western diplomats are unnerved by a 90-percent increase in military
spending ordered by Aliyev for 2011. Azerbaijan has been locked for two
decades in a conflict with neighboring Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
Speaking at the burial on Sunday of two Azeri soldiers repatriated
from Nagorno-Karabakh, Aliyev repeated a threat to take the region
back by force.
"The army of Azerbaijan waits for the order of the commander-in-chief
and is ready to fulfil it," he said. "No one wants war, but we do
not want to conduct negotiations for the sake of negotiations."
From: A. Papazian