Azerbaijan, Baku, April 13 / Trend E. Ostapenko /
No misunderstanding on a proposal of joint actions was in discussions between Azerbaijan and the Venice Commission. They will be taken on the eve of the parliamentary elections in the country, the CE Venice Commission representative Sergei Kuznetsov told media today.
"We plan to hold actions on the appeals system, about which I have mentioned, in June. The preliminary agreement has been already reached," Kuznetsov said.
He said that the format has been approximately defined. Group members, lawyers, including independent, as well as representatives of those organizations with which the Venice Commission worked on this topic will be invited to consider complaints.
As to the Electoral Code, there are shortcomings and points to be worked out in any legislation act, Kuznetsov said.
Recommendations on the Electoral Code that the Venice Commission presented two years ago, remain in force, he said. "The position of the Venice Commission is that any legislative changes should be made well in advance. To change the rules just before the elections is not the best approach, because all those who participate in the election campaign, both candidates and voters must know the rules beforehand, Kuznetsov said.
He said that of course, the existing complaints system will be the most important of those to be considered at upcoming events. "We need to consider how this system protects the rights of voters. I think it will be much easier to think now, as we have a decision by the European Court. The country must fulfill it by virtue of its obligations within the Council of Europe," Kuznetsov said.
He said the decision was made only last week and it should be carefully examined.
"I hope that all concerned in its organization in Azerbaijan will closely familiarize with it. On this basis we will think what and how we can change in a system of appeal," Kuznetsov said.
He said that the Azerbaijani authorities appealed to get a resolution on the draft law [then it was a draft law] on freedom of assembly. The commission adopted a conclusion about two years ago, which was quite positive, " he said. "A lot of guarantees and positive points were reflected in the law compared to the norms that existed before. Nevertheless, we certainly know that many complain about how the law is applied," Kuznetsov said.
He said that issues of freedom of assembly, especially before the elections, will be the subject of discussions, and perhaps some joint events organized by the Venice Commission and the authorities of Azerbaijan. Their goal is to determine why reprimands from various organizations and citizens occur while applying the law.
"Until now we have not participated in discussions about the use of electronic voting in Azerbaijan. In our recommendations, this issue is not mentioned either," he said.