by
Martin Banks
Citizens also backed Aliyev's plans to create a new first vice-president position. The result will place the holder of the post above the prime minister as second-in-command of the country. Some 88% of the 5m voters were in also favour of the elimination of an age limit to stand for the Azerbaijan parliament.
The result has been greeted as a resounding show of support for the president with the European Parliament saying it will "respect" the result of the poll, which addressed 29 constitutional amendments. An 11-strong delegation of MEPs was in the country to observer the referendum.
European People's Party (EPP) vice-president and Portuguese MEP Mário David visited two separate polling stations in the capital Baku and told EBR, "As an experienced election observer, I can testify that our meeting with the Central Election Committee and our observation of the opening of the ballots and procedures were according to the international standards." In total, he said, "there were 117 international observers from 18 international organisations, including PACE (the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe).
There were no military or police present in the polling stations, as they are obliged to keep a distance of at least 100 metres". "To sum up, it is the conviction of our delegation that the process of the referendum has been conducted in a free, open and sound process, in accordance with the best international standards, and that it will definitively express the will of the people of Azerbaijan," he said.
There were no military or police present in the polling stations, as they are obliged to keep a distance of at least 100 metres". "To sum up, it is the conviction of our delegation that the process of the referendum has been conducted in a free, open and sound process, in accordance with the best international standards, and that it will definitively express the will of the people of Azerbaijan," he said.
Another EPP MEP, Greek member Emmanouil Kefalogiannis, added: "Twenty-nine different votes on constitutional amendments give more room for manoeuvre. Azerbaijanis are changing their system to adjust it to Western standards and I find the referendum democratic." The EPP delegation earlier met Aliyev and, on this, David, said, "We didn't discuss the referendum. We discussed oil prices and their overall impact on investment and economy.
"He underlined that he regretted that the Nagorno-Karabakh issue is no longer on the international agenda and the different treatment of the question of Crimea in comparison to Nagorno-Karabakh. He also requested practical and financial help (from the European Union) regarding the one million IDPs (internally displaced people)." Speaking in Baku, European Parliament Vice President Ryszard Czarnecki said: "We will respect the result of this referendum, because for us the will of your nation is the most important."
The final results accurately reflected the exit-poll predictions of leading New York-based firm Arthur J. Finkelstein and its international political consultant George Birnbaum said before the polls closed: "The overall support is expected to be above 90 percent." Birnbaum added: "Our pre-referendum survey on 15 September showed that 96.7% of the Azerbaijani people perceive Nagorno-Karabakh as the most important issue. Two years ago this was the third highest concern." This is a reference to the crisis situation near the border with Armenia which flared again in April and has seen many Azeri displaced, illegally under international law.
Independent of the USSR since 1991, the Republic of Azerbaijan has been ruled by Aliyev since 2003. He was preceded in the role by his father, Heydar, who was president for a decade. Azerbaijan is a Muslim but largely secular country close to Iran, Georgia and Turkey on the western edge of the Caspian Sea. In recent years it has worked hard to sell its 'European' credentials.
By: N. Peter Kramer
