Musavat stated that there are no democratic conditions for holding Presidential elections

Baku/09.12.23/Turan: The Musavat Party has issued a statement due to the appointment of early Presidential elections in Azerbaijan on February 7.

It says that "since 1993, no democratic elections or referendum have ever been held in Azerbaijan."

According to Musavat, "as a rule, the country did not provide a democratic pre-election environment, which is a condition for ensuring the freedom and fairness of elections."

The electoral legislation did not meet democratic standards, and the election commissions were under the control of the authorities.

During the election campaigns, the candidates were not provided with equal conditions for campaigning. The voting and vote counting process was accompanied by gross violations of the law and massive falsifications, the Party statement further says.

"Even despite all this, in recent years, the political authorities have also used the practice of early elections to ensure their "victory". Head of State Ilham Aliyev, without providing any explanations to the public, scheduled early presidential elections for February 7, 2024. By this decision, the authorities have minimized the possibilities of the political opposition and the strata of those who want democratic changes, as well as potential observation missions, to prepare for the elections," Musavat further said in a statement.

Election campaigning in the period of long vacations, short daylight hours, and cold weather season will help reduce the activity of the population in the electoral process. And this is compliant with the interests of the authorities, who seek to turn the elections into a formal procedure, according to the Musavat Party.

The unfolding of a new wave of repression on the eve of the elections, the arrests of journalists and political activists is another confirmation of the authorities' unwillingness to hold democratic elections.

Musavat demands from the authorities to create democratic environment for holding elections, the release of all political prisoners, ensuring freedom of assembly, speech and expression, and representation of political forces contending for elections in election commissions.

"The Musavat Party demands the removal of all obstacles and restrictions for holding elections in terms of equal political competition," the Party's statement concludes.-06b-