2023-12-18 23:40:17
Azerbaijan People’s Front Party (APP) issued a statement regarding the extraordinary presidential elections scheduled for February 7, 2024. The statement was adopted at the congress of this party held on December 16.
APF declares that “it is impossible to hold free and fair elections in the current atmosphere of repression, mass arrests and fear”.
“The extraordinary election scheduled by Ilham Aliyev for February 7, 2024 will not be a real election, but an election show. PFLP does not intend to participate in this performance. PFLP is always ready to participate in real elections, but it will never take part in an election show. PFLP boycotts the elections scheduled for February 7, 2024 and calls our people to boycott these fake elections. The PFLP considers only the electoral way of coming to power acceptable and will continue its struggle to achieve real elections in the country and pressure on the authorities,” the statement said.
PFLP once again demands from the authorities to create conditions for free and fair elections in the country, and to start the necessary reforms for this.
The document states that it is the second time in the last 3 years that early elections are held when there is no need for the interests of the country and the people.
PFLP declares that there is currently no election environment and atmosphere in the country.
“On the contrary, the political situation is worse and undemocratic than in all previous years. Since the spring of this year, the number of political prisoners in the country has more than doubled. Currently, there are more than 250 political prisoners in Azerbaijan prisons. Only since December 7, when the early elections were announced, 2 journalists, 1 social activist and 1 politician – Teymur Karimov, Hafiz Babali, Mohyeddin Orujov and Tofig Yagublu – have been arrested. The number of journalists and social activists arrested in the last few months has reached 10 people. 10 members of the PFLP are currently living as political prisoners.”
PFLP believes that the free media in the country has been almost completely destroyed.
“Ilham Aliyev is now busy destroying the last and smallest remnants of free media. For this purpose, a new, reactionary law on the media was also adopted. Freedom of association and assembly was taken away from people. Meetings and marches have been completely banned in the country for almost 5 years. The activities of the opposition political parties have been further restricted. A special law was adopted for this purpose,” the statement said.
According to the party, torture and police violence have become the main principle of governance in the country.
“Even critics of the regime outside of Azerbaijan are subjected to physical and moral terror. An atmosphere of total fear has been created in the country.
Elections are not controlled by various interest groups other than the government. Election commissions are fully under the control of the government. There is no mechanism to observe the elections and review election complaints,” the document states.
In turn, the Azerbaijani authorities state that the environment for democratic freedoms, free and fair elections is fully provided in the country. Official Baku declares that people are not persecuted against their will and that there are no political prisoners.
At the same time, local and international human rights organizations sharply criticize the activities of the Azerbaijani authorities in relation to the protection of human rights. Azerbaijan calls on the government to release the persons known as political prisoners. Local human rights organizations report that more than two hundred people have been arrested for political reasons in the country. In recent days, 8 journalists have been arrested.
Elman Nasirov, a member of the Inspection Commission of the New Azerbaijan Party, a deputy of the Milli Majlis, said that there was no democracy in the country during the Musavat-APC rule.
“At that time, there was anarchy and chaos in the country. Inflation reached 1174 percent in 1992 and 1080 percent in 1993. In 1993, the GDP was only 31.4 million manats, and the state budget was 10.7 million manats,” he said.
According to Nasirov, democratic construction in the country coincides with the period of Aliyev’s rule.
“The 1995 constitution and its additions and amendments played an exceptional role in the process of legal state building and civil society formation in our country. The freedom and inviolability of the individual, as well as their legal protection, were ensured in our country, the foundations for a multi-party system were created, political pluralism, freedom of conscience and religion, minority rights, and equality before the law were ensured. The presumption of innocence reflected in the legislative acts of the Republic of Azerbaijan, which is its integral component, was ensured. In addition, the Constitutional Court, a three-level judicial system, a new judicial corps were created, the independence of the courts and the transparency of procedural rules were ensured, tens of thousands of people were amnestied and a large number of prisoners were forgiven, censorship was abolished, the freedom of the mass media and the free activity of NGOs were ensured. done”, he said.
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