Azeri President Ilham Aliyev’s ruling Yeni Azerbaijan (New Azerbaijan) claimed victory in a parliamentary election yesterday that mainstream opposition and worldwide monitors were shunning.
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“I think that we’ll get not less than 70 seats in a new parliament”, Akhmedov said.
Global rights groups have cast doubt on the election, accusing the government of jailing political opponents on trumped-up charges and limiting parties’ ability to campaign in the ex-Soviet state.
A four-MK delegation is set to observe Sunday’s election in Azerbaijan, led by former foreign minister MK Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu), chairman of the Israel-Azerbaijan Parliamentary Friendship group, and including ex-ambassador to the US MK Michael Oren (Kulanu), MK Sofa Landver (Yisrael Beytenu), and MK Yoel Razbozov (Yesh Atid).
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has refrained from sending observers to Sunday’s elections, citing restrictions imposed on its monitoring mission by the authorities in Azerbaijan.
A few 55.7 percent of the country’s eligible voters casted ballots in Sunday’s race which featured 767 candidates competing for seats in the 125-member parliament (Milli Majlis) for a five-year term.
Western governments balance their criticism of Azerbaijan’s record on human rights with strategic considerations.
“The Azerbaijani government’s crackdown on independent and critical voices has a particularly damaging effect ahead of the country’s November 1 parliamentary elections”, Isabel Santos of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly said in a statement on Tuesday.
An independent candidate, Tural Abbasli, said that one group of people had voted at at least three polling stations and that observers were being harassed.
There are now dozens of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, including prominent journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders, politicians, youth activists, and others who dared to express opinions critical of the ruling regime.
The head of state said that despite Azerbaijan’s invitation, the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights insisted on sending an arbitrary number of observers to the country.
Musavat and the Popular Front also said in recent days they would boycott the election and would not recognize the official results.
“The country does not possess even half of the conditions necessary for free and fair elections”, the party said.
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Although the election’s results may be a foregone conclusion, they do have political significance for Azerbaijan’s worldwide relations.
