Progress in presidential election in Azerbaijan

According to the OSCE’s preliminary assessment of the presidential election in Azerbaijan on 15 October, considerable progress was made with regard to procedures on election day itself. However, there were clear shortcomings during the period leading up to the election, in particular relating to the situation of the media, media coverage of the election campaign and restrictions on freedom of assembly.  Most of the opposition chose to boycott the election, which contributed to voters having few real alternatives.  

“I am pleased that Azerbaijan has held an election. This election helps to promote the democratic reform process.  A democracy must accept that it will be assessed on the basis of how it carries out elections. I hope that the fact that the election was held and the way it was conducted can also lead to progress in the important areas remaining to be addressed, such as freedom of the press,” Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre commented.  

The election in Azerbaijan was monitored by a number of international observers, for instance from the OSCE, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and the European Parliament. Norway provided eight observers, through the OSCE. In addition, the Norwegian Storting was represented in the PACE delegation. However, a number of other Norwegian observers, for instance from the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, were not granted accreditation to observe the election.  

“It is regrettable that a number of Norwegian observers, many of them from NGOs, were not allowed to observe the election. We will raise this issue with the authorities in Azerbaijan,” Mr Støre said.  

He emphasised that Norway will continue to assist Azerbaijan in fulfilling its international obligations to the OSCE and the Council of Europe.  

“Providing assistance for reform efforts is an important part of the cooperation agreement we concluded with Azerbaijan in December last year. We will now explore opportunities for further developing cooperation with the OSCE and the Council of Europe with a view to strengthening our assistance for reform efforts in Azerbaijan,” Mr Støre added.