PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN ARMENIA CAN BE RECOGNIZED ILLEGITIMATE
Azerbaijan Business Center
March 18 2013
Baku, Fineko/abc.az. The presidential election held in Armenia on
18 February 2013 can be recognized illegitimate for the reason of
victory in it by a candidate admitting openly committing a crime
against humanity.
This is, in any case, the opinion of Euronest Parliamentary Assembly's
vice president Elkhan Suleymanov.
"We call on the international community and the official election
observation missions to consider the presidential elections in Armenia
and the election of Serzh Sargsyan illegitimate. Moreover, we demand
the European Union to refuse signing the Association Agreement with
Armenia till the liberation of Azerbaijani territories from military
occupation, and to discuss the current situation on this issue in
the OSCE and CoE Parliamentary Assemblies, the European Parliament,
and other international organizations. It should be kept in mind
that only a fair evaluation of the elections in Armenia will help
to prevent the deepening of current hostile relations between the
Azerbaijani and Armenian nations because of the ongoing military
occupation of Azerbaijan by Armenia. It is also the only way to help
preventing the beginning of new aggressive wars in other countries,"
the Suleymanov's statement says.
A reason for the statement was not "a lack of impartiality of the
public administration, misuse of administrative resources, and
undue interference in the process, mainly by proxies representing
the incumbent, and some serious violations observed on the election
day", but that the international community positively evaluates the
presidential elections in Armenia in the light of democracy, human
rights, and rule of law in Armenia.
"This country conducted an armed aggression against its neighbour
Azerbaijan, keeps 20% of Azerbaijani territories under military
occupation so far, carried out a policy of ethnic cleansing in those
occupied territories, thus, they massively and grossly violated
the rights of about one million ethnic Azerbaijanis, who became
refugees and internally displaced people. Be reminded that Armenia
was faced repeatedly with its international and legal accountability
for those war crimes not only by Azerbaijan but also by the entire
world community. Armenia's aggressive activities, war crimes and
crimes against humanity contradict democracy, human rights, and rule
of law and at the same time, prove the unwillingness of this state to
recognize these international principles. Therefore, the evaluation
itself of the presidential elections in Armenia in the light of
democracy, human rights, and rule of law is the manifestation of
disrespect to these values," the statement says.
The aggravating point is that Serj Sargisyan, commander of the armed
Armenian groups, which committed a brutal genocide against innocent
civilians in the town of Khojaly in Azerbaijan on 26 February of 1992,
has been elected President.
Thomas de Waal, senior associate of the Washington DC-based Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace writes in his book "Black Garden:
Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War" that when he asked
Armenian Military Commander Serzh Sargsyan to talk about the occupation
of Khojaly, he told: "Before Khojaly, the Azerbaijanis thought that
they were joking with us, they thought that the Armenians were people
who could not raise their hand against the civilian population. We
were able to break that (stereotype)."
"Serzh Sargsyan indeed acknowledges that he is one of the authors and
participants of the bloody ethnic crimes against civilians in Khojaly.
However, today the world faces that Sargsyan, who is directly
responsible for massacring mercilessly hundreds of innocent civilians,
is re-elected a president," the statement says.
The most incomprehensible is that by evaluating elections and its
results in the light of democracy, human rights and the rule of law,
the international community approves the election of the criminal as
the head of Armenia.
"Thus, the international community, therefore, casts serious doubt
on all its fundamental standards such as democratic values, respect
to human rights and rule of law, as envisaged in its documents. This
proves the corrosion of the system of democratic values and their
assessment. This anti-democratic assessment may in the future give
rise to similar transformation of disputes between member countries
in military confrontation and undermines confidence of the peoples
of the world in democracy," the statement says.
http://abc.az/eng/news_18_03_2013_72387.html
Azerbaijan Business Center
March 18 2013
Baku, Fineko/abc.az. The presidential election held in Armenia on
18 February 2013 can be recognized illegitimate for the reason of
victory in it by a candidate admitting openly committing a crime
against humanity.
This is, in any case, the opinion of Euronest Parliamentary Assembly's
vice president Elkhan Suleymanov.
"We call on the international community and the official election
observation missions to consider the presidential elections in Armenia
and the election of Serzh Sargsyan illegitimate. Moreover, we demand
the European Union to refuse signing the Association Agreement with
Armenia till the liberation of Azerbaijani territories from military
occupation, and to discuss the current situation on this issue in
the OSCE and CoE Parliamentary Assemblies, the European Parliament,
and other international organizations. It should be kept in mind
that only a fair evaluation of the elections in Armenia will help
to prevent the deepening of current hostile relations between the
Azerbaijani and Armenian nations because of the ongoing military
occupation of Azerbaijan by Armenia. It is also the only way to help
preventing the beginning of new aggressive wars in other countries,"
the Suleymanov's statement says.
A reason for the statement was not "a lack of impartiality of the
public administration, misuse of administrative resources, and
undue interference in the process, mainly by proxies representing
the incumbent, and some serious violations observed on the election
day", but that the international community positively evaluates the
presidential elections in Armenia in the light of democracy, human
rights, and rule of law in Armenia.
"This country conducted an armed aggression against its neighbour
Azerbaijan, keeps 20% of Azerbaijani territories under military
occupation so far, carried out a policy of ethnic cleansing in those
occupied territories, thus, they massively and grossly violated
the rights of about one million ethnic Azerbaijanis, who became
refugees and internally displaced people. Be reminded that Armenia
was faced repeatedly with its international and legal accountability
for those war crimes not only by Azerbaijan but also by the entire
world community. Armenia's aggressive activities, war crimes and
crimes against humanity contradict democracy, human rights, and rule
of law and at the same time, prove the unwillingness of this state to
recognize these international principles. Therefore, the evaluation
itself of the presidential elections in Armenia in the light of
democracy, human rights, and rule of law is the manifestation of
disrespect to these values," the statement says.
The aggravating point is that Serj Sargisyan, commander of the armed
Armenian groups, which committed a brutal genocide against innocent
civilians in the town of Khojaly in Azerbaijan on 26 February of 1992,
has been elected President.
Thomas de Waal, senior associate of the Washington DC-based Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace writes in his book "Black Garden:
Armenia and Azerbaijan through Peace and War" that when he asked
Armenian Military Commander Serzh Sargsyan to talk about the occupation
of Khojaly, he told: "Before Khojaly, the Azerbaijanis thought that
they were joking with us, they thought that the Armenians were people
who could not raise their hand against the civilian population. We
were able to break that (stereotype)."
"Serzh Sargsyan indeed acknowledges that he is one of the authors and
participants of the bloody ethnic crimes against civilians in Khojaly.
However, today the world faces that Sargsyan, who is directly
responsible for massacring mercilessly hundreds of innocent civilians,
is re-elected a president," the statement says.
The most incomprehensible is that by evaluating elections and its
results in the light of democracy, human rights and the rule of law,
the international community approves the election of the criminal as
the head of Armenia.
"Thus, the international community, therefore, casts serious doubt
on all its fundamental standards such as democratic values, respect
to human rights and rule of law, as envisaged in its documents. This
proves the corrosion of the system of democratic values and their
assessment. This anti-democratic assessment may in the future give
rise to similar transformation of disputes between member countries
in military confrontation and undermines confidence of the peoples
of the world in democracy," the statement says.
http://abc.az/eng/news_18_03_2013_72387.html