Home > 5.1 Nature of the referendum > AZERBAIJAN - Joint Opinion on the Draft Law on amendments and changes to the Electoral Code adopted by the Council for Democratic Elections and the Venice Commission
 
 
 
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Paragraph 33
 

The new Article 73 appears to be a technical amendment to make the procedure for withdrawal of a referendum campaign group similar to the procedure for withdrawal of a candidate. It would appear that this amendment ensures that withdrawn referendum campaign groups do not receive public resources during the referendum campaign. As long as withdrawn referendum campaign groups maintain their rights of expression, speech, association, and assembly, depriving them of public resources for the referendum campaign due to their official request for withdrawal is acceptable. Referendum voters have the right to receive information from such groups notwithstanding that some groups could decline the benefit of public resources for conveying information to voters.