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The European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center (ESISC) issued an analytic article on the pre-electoral process in Azerbaijan in response to the report of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR).

The introduction part of the article says that on October 9, 2013, 4,9 millions of Azerbaijani voters will go to the polls to elect their president and determine the future direction of their old but relatively recent independent nation.

"For months, the government of Azerbaijan has reiterated its strong commitment to organize free and fair, transparent, and objective elections. In this regard, the country as improved its legal framework and has highlighted the importance it attaches to a close cooperation with international organizations.

Moreover, authorities made significant efforts to ensure transparency - for example, the number of polling stations that will be monitored through internet will be increased from 10 per cent to 20 per cent. The number of web-cameras installed in the precincts, will also be increased further: whereas at previous election there were installed 500 cameras, in 2013 presidential election it reports about 1000 cameras to be installed. The entire electoral process is proving that the elections in Azerbaijan are held in a transparent manner, with a level corresponding to European standards.

We have to note that several international observers have issued positive comments on the pre-electoral period, such as the Chairman of the CIS`s Executive Committee Sergey Lebedev, who had already noted out the high activity of the voters during the last presidential elections. "Frankly speaking, I haven`t received any negative comments on the election preparations", he said this year, whereas Council of Europe`s Ukrainian member Ivan Popescu praised "a very well-organized presidential elections in Azerbaijan".

Despite those praises, it is therefore legitimate to express our surprise that the OSCE`s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) decided to publish an ill-thought-out report, denying all the progress achieved by the Azerbaijani democracy in the past twenty years, unduly presenting the country as an authoritarian regime. Also surprising is the fact that the OSCE Parliament Assembly (PA)`s President Ranko Krivokapic announced that his assembly would not send its observers to the forthcoming elections in Azerbaijan, officially for the reason that the date for elections coincides with the last stage of the preparation of the Assembly`s Autumn Meeting on October 13-15 in Budva, Montenegro.

As we shall demonstrate in the present report, these critical assessments coming from the OSCE have little in common with the reality on the ground. After a short analysis of the situation in Azerbaijan and of the new challenges encountered by the OSCE, we shall therefore present an alternative vision of the Azerbaijani democracy and we shall attempt to answer the main issues raised by the authors of the OSCE report. We will also compare Azerbaijan`s system to several other vote codes across the world, including in Western Europe and North America. In this way, we shall demonstrate that Azerbaijan needs no lesson from abroad in order to consolidate its own democratic process."

The report also gives information on Azerbaijan`s geographical position, population and membership to the international organizations: "Azerbaijan has a population of around 9million people, mostly belonging to the Azeri Turkish ethnic group. More than 90% of the population follows Islam, but the religious affiliation is mostly nominal, as most people are actually practicing a very moderate form of their religion. The national language is Azerbaijani. The main minority groups are Russians, Lesgians, Avars, Talishs, Kurds and Armenians. It is however worth mentioning that nowadays about 30000 ethnical Armenians live in Azerbaijan without any discrimination whereas no one ethnical Azerbaijan person allows living in Armenia. Part of Azerbaijani Armenians lives in the occupied enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, outside the scope of Baku`s effective authority."

Then the article covers history and principles of OSCE and the organization`s recommendations to the Azerbaijani government on the electoral process: "Impartial observers cannot doubt the willingness of Azerbaijan authorities to follow the recommendations of OSCE.To recap, OSCE Election Observation Mission related 2008 Presidential Elections made 27 recommendations. 19 of these have been implemented or were in fact already applied. Out of the 9 recommendations allegedly not implemented by the sovereign Republic of Azerbaijan where the 3 recommendations concerning the independence of the press and ease of access to media reflect the ignorance of the reality of Azerbaijan. It is very easy to create a newspaper. The only legal requirement is to register his title. There are for instance different radical anti-government newspapers like Azadlyg, Musavat and others. In addition, electronic media are completely free and often fierce with the government. The international press can be found easily on the web in a country that favors the proliferation of providers of Internet access (2 public companies and 38 private companies). It is surprising that the OSCE report considers the question of the press freedom in Azerbaijan with a view of underdeveloped country. We were able to see first hand that the quality of the medias as in the European Union is guaranteed by the best new information technologies.

Later in their document, the authors of OSCE`s report are voicing their concerns about some juridical provisions that could potentially affect the fairness of the electoral process.

Citing unnamed "interlocutors", they mention "significant challenges with respect to the exercise of fundamental freedoms in the pre-election period", such as the "limited access to impartial information and diverse political views in broadcast media" (while acknowledging the existence of several television stations with national coverage) or the absence of public campaign financing.

Nevertheless, a genuine intellectual effort would lead any honest observer to recognize that opposition parties do exist in Azerbaijan.

There are 55 state registered political parties in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The organization and activities of political parties in the Republic of Azerbaijan is regulated by Constitution, Civil Code, Election Code, Law "on Political Parties", Law "on State Registration and Registry of Legal Entities", Law on "Financial Accounting" and other normative-legal acts. More than 40 political parties stand in opposition position to the current government. 11 parties, including 8 opposition parties are represented by 84 MPs in the Parliament (Milli Majlis). New Azerbaijan Party has 71, Civil Solidarity Party has 3, Motherland Party has 2 MP seats, Social Welfare Party, and each of Whole Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, Great Establishment Party, Civil Unity Party, The Justice Party, Hope Party, Azerbaijan Political Party of Democratic Reforms and Azerbaijan National Revival Movement Party has 1 MP seat. There are several opposition parties like National Independence Party, Communist Party, Musavat Party, Modern Musavat Party, Democratic Party, Democratic Azerbaijan World Party, Azerbaijan People Front Party and Azerbaijan Classical People Front Party that have been elected at the local government level and currently possess sits in local councils. According to the Law "on political parties", they have the right to receive financial support from the state budget depending on the results of the recent elections to the Parliament (Milli Majlis), like in Western Europe. Thus, the state budget for 2013 is expected to be in the amount of 2.5 million AZN. According to the Article 17-1.2 of the mentioned Law, 10 percent of the funds are allocated for the parties that have won at least 3 percent of the valid votes in the election, but are not represented in the parliament. Currently, there are no political parties that meet this criterion. 40 percent of the funds provided for the financing of political parties from the state budget are shared equally between the parties represented in the parliament. 50 percent of the funds are allocated for the parties represented in the Parliament according to the number of their MPs."

"The Republic of Azerbaijan is undeniably a special case in the South Caucasus subregion, and even an example of good governance that could be used as model by several countries and government of the area. An external observer could only testify of a stable social welfare, a women condition closely comparable to that of EU member States, or an utter respect of religious minorities. Let us not forget that these capital indicators of democracy and civil liberties are present in a country faced with the Armenian occupation of an important part of its territory, Nagorno-Karabakh, and which had thus to cater one million people, that is to say around 10% of its own population.

Despite major inconvenience, that would have unsettled several other States confronted with foreign occupation, the young Republic of Azerbaijan stayed the course of a political blueprint aiming at social empowerment, civil rights and democracy. One can only stay appalled of the low credit given to this venture by the OSCE, whose recent recommendation tend to occult the country`s astonishing progress. Logic and political ethics shall lead international bodies, starting with Western democracies, to support the Republic of Azerbaijan on the path it chose to follow: social progress and parliamentary democracy. At the end of the article author William Racimora, ESISC Vice-CEO, adds.