Central Election Comission of the Repulic of Azerbaijan (CEC) cnducted its session headed by Mr. Mazahir Panahov on 30 March 2009.

Mr. Natig Mammadov, CEC Secretary reported on the consideration of the appeals entered CEC relted to popular vote (referendum) held on 18 March 2009. He noted that the authorized representatives of "Republicans” and "Movement for Garabagh and Republic” referendum campaign groups related to referendum held on 18 March 2009 appealed jointly to Central Election (Referendum) Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan and asserted that there were law violations in some election (referendum) precincts on the voting day, they asked for taking relevant activities defined by law.

 

The member of Expert Group under Central Election (Referendum) Commission was tasked with the investigation of the authorized representatives' appeal pursuant to legislation. At the result of investigation, relevant opinion was provided, the appeal was considered at the CEC session, it was determined that 135 acts out of 180 attached to the appeal on law violations asserted to be committed in 161 election (referendum) precincts which cover territories of 35 election (referendum) constituencies were compiled by falsification and other serious disadvantages and they did not embody the case of law violation.

 

The date of compiling a part of 77 acts out of the submitted acts did not match with the date of referendum. So, a lot of these were defined to belong to re-elections to Parliament conducted on 13 May 2006. The dates of other acts were adjusted to the date of referendum, consequently, though they were afterwards amended as the acts including suffrage violation an their date was 18 May 2009, there was no doubt that they had not any connection with the referendum held on 18 March 2009.

The remaining parts of these 77 acts did not include any suffrage violation at all, were not fully compiled or were not signed by the compiled person. Therefore, formalization was conducted between the authorized representative who appealed on these cases and Expert Group member conducting investigation by compiling relevant act.

Meanwhile it was defined that 33 acts out of other 103 were falsely compiled in the name of the people who had not conducted observation in the relevant election (referendum) precincts. Not attending the relevant election (referendum) precincts on the voting day at all by these people in the name of whose act has been compiled, was approved by other people who were in relevant election (referendum) precincts on this day, it was not defined that observers in election (referendum) precincts were registered as observers in the register.

 

One of the involving cases while conducting these acts was the fact that the observers in the name of whose the act had been compiled on law violation, approved through other acts that referendum process was conducted without any shortcomings.

25 acts caused grounded doubts as they were compiled and signed by adding the names of the people who had not observed in the mentioned election (referendum) precincts. So, at the result of investigation it was defined that a part of the people who signed the acts on suffrage violation did not observe in the relevant election (referendum) precincts and a part of them were not with the status of an observer at all.

 

This case was approved by the explanations of other people who were at election (referendum) precincts, furthermore, their names were not in the register of observers who were at election (referendum) precincts.
At the result of investigating the remaining 45 acts, the asserted law violations were disapproved by the explanations of the observers, representatives of mass media, commissioners, voters who were at election (referendum) precincts on this day and through the examination of election documents, no one of these cases did not find its proof.

By taking the above-mentioned as a basis, CEC decided that as the appeal of the authorized representatives of "Republicans” and "Movement for Garabagh and Republic” referendum campaign groups is groundless, it shall not be implemented, as the certainty of a part of the mentioned acts caused doubts and was false, they shall be sent to Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
At the session, current issues were also considered.

At the CEC session, representatives of National Democracy Institute, International Foundation for Election Systems (the USA) and mass media also took part.