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Azerbaijani MP adresses to PACE leadership

22 April 2013 10:14 (UTC +04:00)

According to him, Presidential elections in Armenia will be discussed during spring part-session of the Council of Europe on April 22, 2013: “I would like to express my opinions regarding those discussions. At the meeting of Monitoring Committee held on 20^th March, Ms. Karin Woldseth, Head of the Election Observation Mission to Armenia, evaluated the elections as democratic and welcomed them. Thus, we have submitted a motion with signatories of 24 MPs’ from 5 countries regarding the presidential elections of Armenia being undemocratic. At the same time, I would like to tell that 196 out of 225 MPs present in PACE January session of this year voted for the resolution of Monitoring Committee based on the report regarding the democratic situation in Azerbaijan and this resolution included the paragraph on military occupation of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia.

Stating once more the fact that the UN Security Council, European Parliament, and Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe have adopted resolutions condemning the occupation of Azerbaijani territories by Armenia and demanding Armenia to unconditionally release the occupied Azerbaijani territories, I ask you to answer my following questions:

1. How do you approach the fact that Armenia, member state of the Council of Europe keeps under occupation the territories of Azerbaijan, another member state of the Council of Europe, for about 25 years?

2. How do you assess re-election of Sargsyan, organizer and one of the active participants of Khojaly genocide, as the president of Armenia whereas he has not put an end to the occupation for more than 10 years’ term in office for a president of Armenia and has not taken any positive steps towards the peaceful settlement between the two countries?

3. Do you consider attempts to put into operation Khojaly airport in the occupied Azerbaijani territories during his term as a president of Armenia as a sabotage aimed at escalation of tension in the South Caucasus?

4. Armenia will chair Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe from July of current year. How do you assess the chairmanship of the state, which keeps under military occupation the territories of the other member state, in the institution which controls European values, democracy, human rights, and rule of law in the Council of Europe?

5. Does not the evaluation of elections held in the aggressor country in the light of democracy and in general, the membership of the aggressor state to CoE contradict democracy, freedom of speech and the rule of law?

Dear colleagues, unfortunately, I have not received any reaction to my statement addressed to you on 18^th March 2013. However, I hope justice will win and you will support democracy, human rights, and the rule of law.”