NAMAT ALIYEV v. AZERBAIJAN JUDGMENT 11 III. RELEVANT INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTS A. Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters 54. The relevant excerpts from the Code of Good Practice in Electoral Matters (Guidelines and Explanatory Report) (CDL-AD (2002) 23 rev), adopted by the European Commission for Democracy Through Law (“the Venice Commission”) at its 51st and 52nd sessions (5-6 July and 18-19 October 2002), read as follows: “GUIDELINES ON ELECTIONS ... 3. Procedural guarantees 3.1. Organisation of elections by an impartial body a. An impartial body must be in charge of applying electoral law. b. Where there is no longstanding tradition of administrative authorities' independence from those holding political power, independent, impartial electoral commissions must be set up at all levels, from the national level to polling station level. c. The central electoral commission must be permanent in nature. d. It should include: i. at least one member of the judiciary; ii. representatives of parties already in parliament or having scored at least a given percentage of the vote; these persons must be qualified in electoral matters. It may include: iii. a representative of the Ministry of the Interior; iv. representatives of national minorities. e. Political parties must be equally represented on electoral commissions or must be able to observe the work of the impartial body. Equality may be construed strictly or on a proportional basis... ... h. It is desirable that electoral commissions take decisions by a qualified majority or by consensus. ...