By empty (8/26/2002 issue of the CACI Analyst)
PRIVATE Central election officials in Azerbaijan say voters have overwhelmingly approved proposed constitutional changes put forth in a controversial referendum held Saturday, but Azerbaijan's political opposition rejects the claim and says it is preparing a formal protest over alleged cases of fraud. The electoral officials say voters in Azerbaijan have handed President Geidar Aliyev a resounding endorsement for constitutional change. The officials say 97 percent of the country's more than four million voters approved proposed amendments to change the way the president and parliament are elected in the former Soviet Republic.The Central Asia-Caucasus Analyst is a biweekly publication of the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program, a Joint Transatlantic Research and Policy Center affiliated with the American Foreign Policy Council, Washington DC., and the Institute for Security and Development Policy, Stockholm. For 15 years, the Analyst has brought cutting edge analysis of the region geared toward a practitioner audience.
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