Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09BAKU210
2009-03-17 14:49:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Baku
Cable title:
RESPONSE: DEMARCHE ON AZERBAIJAN'S CONSTITUTIONAL
how-toVZCZCXRO1834 RR RUEHAG RUEHDBU RUEHROV RUEHSR DE RUEHKB #0210/01 0761449 ZNY CCCCC ZZH R 171449Z MAR 09 FM AMEMBASSY BAKU TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0918 INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA 3294 RHMFISS/CDR USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC RUEKDIA/DIA WASHDC RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 1286
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 000210
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EUR/CARC AND DRL FOR WSILVERMAN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/17/2019
TAGS: AJ KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM
SUBJECT: RESPONSE: DEMARCHE ON AZERBAIJAN'S CONSTITUTIONAL
REFERENDUM
REF: SECSTATE 24919
Classified By: Political-Economic Counselor Robert Garverick, for reaso
ns 1.4 b and d
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 000210
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EUR/CARC AND DRL FOR WSILVERMAN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/17/2019
TAGS: AJ KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM
SUBJECT: RESPONSE: DEMARCHE ON AZERBAIJAN'S CONSTITUTIONAL
REFERENDUM
REF: SECSTATE 24919
Classified By: Political-Economic Counselor Robert Garverick, for reaso
ns 1.4 b and d
1. (C) Ambassador delivered reftel points to Presidential
Administration International Relations Advisor Novruz
Mammedov on March 17. Mammedov received the demarche
agreeing that we need to find the right approach under the
new administration to constructively and productively address
issues of democracy and human rights as a key part of our
relations.
2. (C) Mammedov (please protect) then offered to explain to
the Ambassador "the real reason" for the referendum, speaking
candidly and off the record. Readily admitting that he
understood his explanation would not go down well in
Washington, he explained that immediately after the October
2008 Presidential election, jockeying began among the
political and &administrative8 (Ministers) elites in
Azerbaijan with respect to who would be President Aliyev's
successor in five years. Some, like Education Minister Misir
Merdanov and Tax Minister Faisal Mammadov, already saw their
futures assured by backing Mehriban Aliyeva. If this
jockeying had started so quickly, Mammedov said, "imagine
what it would have been in 2, 3 or 4 years." This
development surprised and alarmed the President and his
supporters. Azerbaijan is a "progressive Muslim country"
but divisions amongst the leadership when Azerbaijan "was
only halfway along its development path" could have serious
consequences. Moreover, divisions among the elite would open
channels for foreign powers, especially Russia and Iran, to
exploit. "Our society is not mature, like the US or Europe )
our Ministers do not have a modern mentality ... we came up
with the idea of the referendum to calm this (situation) and
assure stability given the current state of our politics."
3. (C) The Ambassador also delivered the reftel points via
telephone to Deputy Foreign Minister Mammadguliyev. He
thanked the USG for the message and said he appreciates the
USG's attention to this process, which he hopes will be
"another progressive step on human rights and democracy in
Azerbaijan." He said he would report the message to the
Minister. Reftel demarche was also delivered by poloff to
Central Election Commission Head of International Department
Rovzat Gasimov, who thanked the Embassy for its support of a
free and fair referendum process.
Venice Commission Report
--------------
4. (SBU) This demarche was delivered on the same day the
Council of Europe's Venice Commission published its opinion
on the Constitutional amendments to be voted on in this
referendum. The draft opinion was delivered to the GOAJ on
March 6 and led the GOAJ to send a high level delegation from
both parliament and the presidential administration to the
Venice Commission meeting on March 13-14. The final opinion
was published in its entirety, and then followed by a long
response from the GOAJ, which argued against nearly every
paragraph of the opinion. After today's publication Ali
Huseynov, a member of Azerbaijan's PACE delegation condemned
the opinion to the press.
5. (SBU) The opinion itself takes a relatively strong stance
against the legality of several of the amendments, and of the
process under which it was conducted. It calls the removal
of the two-term limit on the presidency "a serious set-back
on Azerbaijan's road to a consolidated democracy." It also
objects to the extension of the term of both parliament and
the president in times of war, several of the amendments
dealing with basic rights and liberties including the one on
the media, and the provision which requires municipalities to
report to the parliament. It does approve of the initiative
to allow 40,000 citizens to propose legislation, the
provision that parliament will approve intergovernmental
agreement that contradict Azerbaijani law, and the one
calling for the publication of parliamentary sessions and
court decisions. Overall, the Venice Commission summarizes
its opinion with the sentence "the overall logic and
coherence of the reform is not always evident and the
procedure chosen may give rise to some criticism."
BAKU 00000210 002 OF 002
DERSE
SIPDIS
DEPT FOR EUR/CARC AND DRL FOR WSILVERMAN
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/17/2019
TAGS: AJ KDEM PGOV PREL PHUM
SUBJECT: RESPONSE: DEMARCHE ON AZERBAIJAN'S CONSTITUTIONAL
REFERENDUM
REF: SECSTATE 24919
Classified By: Political-Economic Counselor Robert Garverick, for reaso
ns 1.4 b and d
1. (C) Ambassador delivered reftel points to Presidential
Administration International Relations Advisor Novruz
Mammedov on March 17. Mammedov received the demarche
agreeing that we need to find the right approach under the
new administration to constructively and productively address
issues of democracy and human rights as a key part of our
relations.
2. (C) Mammedov (please protect) then offered to explain to
the Ambassador "the real reason" for the referendum, speaking
candidly and off the record. Readily admitting that he
understood his explanation would not go down well in
Washington, he explained that immediately after the October
2008 Presidential election, jockeying began among the
political and &administrative8 (Ministers) elites in
Azerbaijan with respect to who would be President Aliyev's
successor in five years. Some, like Education Minister Misir
Merdanov and Tax Minister Faisal Mammadov, already saw their
futures assured by backing Mehriban Aliyeva. If this
jockeying had started so quickly, Mammedov said, "imagine
what it would have been in 2, 3 or 4 years." This
development surprised and alarmed the President and his
supporters. Azerbaijan is a "progressive Muslim country"
but divisions amongst the leadership when Azerbaijan "was
only halfway along its development path" could have serious
consequences. Moreover, divisions among the elite would open
channels for foreign powers, especially Russia and Iran, to
exploit. "Our society is not mature, like the US or Europe )
our Ministers do not have a modern mentality ... we came up
with the idea of the referendum to calm this (situation) and
assure stability given the current state of our politics."
3. (C) The Ambassador also delivered the reftel points via
telephone to Deputy Foreign Minister Mammadguliyev. He
thanked the USG for the message and said he appreciates the
USG's attention to this process, which he hopes will be
"another progressive step on human rights and democracy in
Azerbaijan." He said he would report the message to the
Minister. Reftel demarche was also delivered by poloff to
Central Election Commission Head of International Department
Rovzat Gasimov, who thanked the Embassy for its support of a
free and fair referendum process.
Venice Commission Report
--------------
4. (SBU) This demarche was delivered on the same day the
Council of Europe's Venice Commission published its opinion
on the Constitutional amendments to be voted on in this
referendum. The draft opinion was delivered to the GOAJ on
March 6 and led the GOAJ to send a high level delegation from
both parliament and the presidential administration to the
Venice Commission meeting on March 13-14. The final opinion
was published in its entirety, and then followed by a long
response from the GOAJ, which argued against nearly every
paragraph of the opinion. After today's publication Ali
Huseynov, a member of Azerbaijan's PACE delegation condemned
the opinion to the press.
5. (SBU) The opinion itself takes a relatively strong stance
against the legality of several of the amendments, and of the
process under which it was conducted. It calls the removal
of the two-term limit on the presidency "a serious set-back
on Azerbaijan's road to a consolidated democracy." It also
objects to the extension of the term of both parliament and
the president in times of war, several of the amendments
dealing with basic rights and liberties including the one on
the media, and the provision which requires municipalities to
report to the parliament. It does approve of the initiative
to allow 40,000 citizens to propose legislation, the
provision that parliament will approve intergovernmental
agreement that contradict Azerbaijani law, and the one
calling for the publication of parliamentary sessions and
court decisions. Overall, the Venice Commission summarizes
its opinion with the sentence "the overall logic and
coherence of the reform is not always evident and the
procedure chosen may give rise to some criticism."
BAKU 00000210 002 OF 002
DERSE