MPs ask to dissolve Azerbaijani Parliament

The National Assembly of Azerbaijan (Parliament) has overwhelmingly adopted an appeal to the president of the country asking him to appoint early parliamentary elections.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 28, the political council of the ruling "Eni Azerbaijan" Party put forward the initiative to dissolve the parliament and hold early elections thereto. Ali Akhmedov, the party's executive secretary, has explained that updating the National Assembly is needed to support "the reforms implemented by President Ilham Aliev." Early elections will severely limit the opposition's chances to enter the Parliament and only strengthen the "family rule" in Azerbaijan, the analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have predicted.

Today, Ogtai Asadov, the Speaker, has put the initiative of the parliamentary majority to vote.

The MPs have almost unanimously supported the decision to send an appeal to dissolve the parliament and appoint early elections to the president. 99 MPs have voted in favour thereof; only one voted against and one MP has abstained, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

The true reason for the dissolution of the parliament is unclear, because of the no-transparency of political processes underway in the country, said Anar Mamedli, a lawyer and an election expert. "We live in a country, where there is no transparency in politics; and we do not know what is happening inside the power," Mr Mamedli said. He is sure that the authorities will not let opposition candidates run for seats in the parliament, the BBC Russian Service reported on November 28.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 2, 2019 at 04:05 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.