Azerbaijan, Baku, October 23 / Trend, T.Hajiyev /
Azerbaijani CEC Chairman Mazahir Panahov is dissatisfied with certain features of OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights report on upcoming parliamentary elections in the country.
"The report states that the CEC had received many complaints over the intervention of public authorities in the election campaign and threats and despite repeated requests, the information was not provided to [Election Observation Mission]. I want to say that, there were not many complaints to CEC over this issue. All of the applications are open to the public. We always publish complaints received at the website of CEC. This information is available to all. Therefore, such things featured in the report seem surprising to me", Panahov told reporters on Saturday.
Panahov believes that the report serves a specific purpose. "I do not say it is "biased ", but such points in the report should not be present. I formally propose to observe the process jointly with your participation, involving the same institutions. The report does not feature my sayings, but features words spoken by somebody", he said.
According to CEC chairman, certain points in the report are general and traditional. "There have been some suggestions by the OSCE over the composition of election commissions, but they were not taken into account - these are words that are stated constantly. The interference by government officials is stated, but on behalf of a third party. Report doesn't specify who had provided that information and where there was such a case, " said Panahov.
CEC Chairman also noted that the report touch upon the quantity of candidates from ruling party and opposition in Azerbaijan. "The report states that ruling party candidates are registered in greater numbers than the opposition. For comparison, I want to say that about 110 YAP (New Azerbaijan Party) candidates were registered. And from opposition blocs more than 120 candidates are registered. At some points [of the report] I felt the inclination to such inaccurate information. In my opinion, this is designed for readers unaware of how this process is going, " he said.
Azerbaijani CEC chairman dissatisfied with some features of OSCE report
Azerbaijani CEC Chairman Mazahir Panahov is dissatisfied with certain features of OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights report on upcoming parliamentary elections in the country.
