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The endeavour to develop the legal framework governing electoral processes is necessary for electoral operations to meet the aspirations of the concerned parties, most notably the voters. To achieve this, the reform process must be guided by key objectives, including enhancing the electoral rights of citizens and institutionalizing guiding principles such as neutrality, inclusivity, transparency, integrity, accuracy and making the electoral process smoother and more efficient.
To hold onto power and enforce total, fearful submission by its citizens, Belarus’ authoritarian regime has transformed itself into a totalitarian system. The human rights situation continues to deteriorate as the number of political prisoners grows and any dissenting voice is met with violence from the country’s security forces. Since the last presidential elections in August 2020, the regime has deepened and broadened its repression against independent media and journalists.
The European Union’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) covers six countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. The Covid-19 pandemic put a strain on fledgling democracies in the EaP region, aggravating pre-existing concerns, such as the weak rule of law, insufficient accountability of executive branches vis-à-vis legislatures and fragile media freedoms (see International IDEA 2022).
International IDEA and the Caucasus Institute for Peace, Democracy and Development (CIPDD) organized a conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, in 2005 on constitutional and political reform in Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. It was dedicated to the exchange of information about the reform process in the three South Caucasus countries and the prospects for their European integration.