Azeri election body calls Garabagh vote ‘illegal’
Azerbaijan's Central Election Commission has denounced as illegal
the upcoming parliamentary elections in Azerbaijan's breakaway
Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh region.
The commission said in a statement that the May 23 elections violate Azerbaijan's constitution and international law. It says holding elections and referendums on the territory of Azerbaijan is the exclusive prerogative of the country's Central Election Commission.
It further condemns as interference in Azerbaijan's domestic affairs the arrival of international observers in Stepanakert (Khankendi) to monitor the voting.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry has also condemned the upcoming elections.
20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory, including Upper Garabagh and seven adjacent districts, has been under Armenian occupation for nearly two decades. Defying international law, the separatist regime in Upper Garabagh declared so-called independence in 1991, which has not been recognized by the world community. *
The commission said in a statement that the May 23 elections violate Azerbaijan's constitution and international law. It says holding elections and referendums on the territory of Azerbaijan is the exclusive prerogative of the country's Central Election Commission.
It further condemns as interference in Azerbaijan's domestic affairs the arrival of international observers in Stepanakert (Khankendi) to monitor the voting.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry has also condemned the upcoming elections.
20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory, including Upper Garabagh and seven adjacent districts, has been under Armenian occupation for nearly two decades. Defying international law, the separatist regime in Upper Garabagh declared so-called independence in 1991, which has not been recognized by the world community. *