AZERBAIJAN ADOPTS NEW LAW ON FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY,

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAKU 000524 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/CARC, EUR/ACE AND DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/04/2018 TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDEM PREL AJ SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN ADOPTS NEW LAW ON FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY, AMENDS ELECTORAL CODE REF: BAKU 366 Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Donald Lu per 1.4 (b,d). ¶1. (C) Summary: On May 30 and June 2, the Azerbaijani Parliament adopted amendments to the law on freedom of assembly and electoral code. OSCE experts believe that the new law on freedom of assembly, if properly implemented, will meet Venice Commission standards. The changes to the electoral code are a mixed bag. As recommended by the Venice Commission, the amendments strengthen the complaints and appeals procedures and make it more difficult to deregister candidates. However, last-minute amendments proposed by the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan Party also shortened the campaign period from 60 to 28 days, eliminated candidates' free air time on state TV (replacing it with time on public TV) and radio, and made it illegal for candidates to post campaign materials on public buildings. While Central Election Commission Chair Panahov defended these changes as insignificant, Venice Commission expert Sergey Kuznetsov commented privately that they were not in compliance with the Venice Commission's recommendations. The Venice Commission will comment publicly on the electoral code amendments on June 13. Based on the GOAJ's failure to change the composition of election commissions, the opposition Azadliq Bloc announced it would boycott the October presidential election. End summary. FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On May 30, the Azerbaijani Parliament adopted amendments to the law on freedom of assembly, which simplify the procedures to organizing public rallies and demonstrations. According to the OSCE Office in Baku, the amendments adopted by Parliament did not differ from the draft amendments carefully negotiated with the Venice Commission and OSCE experts. Although the Venice Commission will not publicly comment on the amendments until they are officially published by the GOAJ, the OSCE expects that the Venice Commission will find the amendments to be in compliance with European standards, as stated in its December 2007 preliminary opinion on the draft amendments (reftel). ¶3. (SBU) The amendments do not dramatically change the existing legal framework for public rallies. As in the previous law, implementation of some vaguely worded provisions - which give significant leeway to local authorities - will be key. Under the new law, organizers must notify authorities five days prior to the event; the authorities in turn must reply at least three days prior to the event. Event organizers are not required to seek government approval for a public rally or event. (Comment: Many observers have noted that while approval may not be "required," the notification and response mechanism is equivalent to an approval process.) ¶4. (SBU) The new law stipulates that public rallies or demonstrations cannot be held within 200 meters of government buildings (the previous limitation was 300 meters). The new law also includes vaguely worded restrictions on public rallies or demonstrations during wakes, weddings, holidays or commemorations days; on the eve and during internationally important events; and allows the government to impose restrictions for "health and moral reasons." Human rights activists worry that these vaguely worded provisions could provide grounds for government authorities to deny authorization for public rallies. ELECTORAL CODE CHANGES -------------- ¶5. (SBU) On June 2, the Azerbaijani Parliament adopted amendments to the electoral code that reflected a mi