“I hope Rasul Guliyev [ex-speaker of Azerbaijan, also chairman of the Azerbaijan Democratic party] will be made answerable after returning to his motherland and will participate in the forthcoming parliamentary elections,” Lord Rassel-Johnson, the ex-President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), a ember of PACE, told a conference on �Elections and Democratic Reforms’ held in Baku on Monday.
He noted that the democratic society can be formed only in case the citizens have a free right to elect the government. He in particular noted the importance of independent court instances. Johnson appraised the proposals use of marking ink during the parliamentary elections, stressing the acceptability of such variant in Azerbaijan.
Touching upon the formation of the elections commission the PACE member said that bodies should function throughout efforts of the opposition and authorities. In the end Lord Rassel Johnson stressed the necessity for transparent media coverage and respect to opposition.