STATEMENT
by the Central Election Commission

For long years Armenian Republic that occupied Nagorno Karabakh of the Republic of Azerbaijan and seven regions located around it and drove thousands of quiet Azerbaijani people out of their native lands has paid no heed to the relevant resolutions by the UN Security Council and requirements of world publicity about clearing occupied areas. Efforts to conduct of illegal "elections: to the "local self-management bodies” in the imaginary Republic of Nagorno Karabakh not recognized by any state created in the territory of the occupied Nagorno Karabakh on August 8 this year is contrary to the international law-based norms, Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan and will affect the current process conducted in the direction of peaceful solution of the conflict.

In accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan, not any social group, organization or person can possess the authority of power implementation. According to Article 142 of the Constitution, elections to municipalities that are the main local self-management bodies, shall be conducted pursuant to rules defined by the Constitution and other relevant laws. As Article 18 of the Election Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan defines, elections to local self-management bodies can be conducted only by the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Efforts of government authorities and separators of invader Armenia to conduct "elections to local self-management bodies” apart from the Constitution without the participation of thousands native Azerbaijanians, Russians and other nations driven out of Nagorno Karabakh means rude breaking of citizens` suffrage.
The Central Election Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan considers such "elections” turned against to state sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Azerbaijan illegal.

The Central Election Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan declares that formation of legal local self-management bodies in the area of Nagorno Karabakh can be implemented in accordance with the Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan after wholly empting the occupied territories, restoring the territorial integrity of the Republic of Azerbaijan and return of IDPs to their permanent settlements.

Central Election Commission
of the Republic of Azerbaijan

Baku city, August 7, 2004