2017 Nagorno-Karabakh constitutional referendum
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A
constitutional referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
was held in the unrecognised Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh on 20 February 2017. At least 25% of registered voters needed to vote in favour in order to validate the result. The referendum passed with about three quarters of voters voting.Nagorno-Karabakh (Azerbaijan), 20 February 2017: Constitution
Direct Democracy


Background

President
Bako Sahakyan Bako Sahaki Sahakyan ( hy, Բակո Սահակի Սահակյան; born 30 August 1960) is an Artsakhi politician who served as the third president of the ''de facto''-independent Republic of Artsakh from 2007 to 2020. He is the longest-serving p ...
created a commission to draft a new constitution to replace the 2006 constitution. The draft was delivered on 24 November 2016 and approved by the
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...
on 17 January by a vote of 20–7. On 19 January, Sahakyan set the referendum date.


Constitutional changes

The constitutional changes would result in the name "Republic of Artsakh" being officially adopted for the unrecognised country and used alongside its current name, as well as in abolishing the office of the
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
and giving more power to the
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
to make quicker decisions on security. Levon Galustyan, an MP from the unrecognised country of
Abkhazia Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which ...
and an observer at the referendum, said the idea for a name change was brought forward after Nagorno-Karabakh politicians had expressed worry that the use of the name "Artsakh" and "Nagorno-Karabakh" by Azerbaijan for its athletic teams and artistic initiatives abroad might create the wrong impression of the region's reality.


Results


Observers

Observation missions to the referendum included over 104 international organizations from more than 30 countries, 103 local observers and over 80 media representatives. Foreign countries and states who sent observer representatives included, Bolivia, Russia, Germany, Austria, Uruguay, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, the Basque Country, the United States and Canada. Artsakh representatives stated that, "The observers highly valued the Referendum as another evidence of consolidation of statehood, expression of free will of Artsakh and a process of democratization."


Reactions

The government of
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
, which Nagorno-Karabakh ''de jure'' is part of but which lost ''de facto'' control of the region following the
First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War, referred to in Armenia as the Artsakh Liberation War ( hy, Արցախյան ազատամարտ, Artsakhyan azatamart) was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 t ...
, condemned the referendum calling it a "provocation" and counter-productive for the conflict resolution process. The government also issued an international arrest warrant for three
Members of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
who acted as observers at the referendum. The
OSCE Minsk Group The OSCE Minsk Group was created in 1992 by the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), now Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), to encourage a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict between Az ...
, the official mediator of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, stated that the results of the referendum would not change the legal status of Nagorno-Karabakh. The governments of
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
,
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
, and
Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...
Турция не признает «референдум» в Нагорном Карабахе — МИД
KP, 18 February 2017
stated that they did not recognise the referendum.


See also

*
2018 Macedonian referendum A referendum was held in the Republic of Macedonia on 30 September 2018, with voters asked whether they supported EU and NATO membership by accepting the Prespa agreement between Macedonia and Greece, signed in June 2018, which aimed to se ...
– a referendum which involved a name change * 2018 Olt County name referendum – another referendum which involved a name change


References

{{Nagorno-Karabakh elections
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...
2017 in the Republic of Artsakh 2017 referendums
Nagorno-Karabakh Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik, and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The region is m ...
Constitutional referendums Constitution of the Republic of Artsakh