AA15CR22ADD2

AS (2015) CR 22
Addendum 2

2015 ORDINARY SESSION

________________________

(Third part)

REPORT

Twenty-second sitting

Tuesday 23 June 2015 at 3.30 p.m.

The functioning of democratic institutions in Azerbaijan

The following texts were submitted for inclusion in the official report by members who were present in the Chamber but were prevented by lack of time from delivering them.

Ms FATALIYEVA (Azerbaijan) – For the 15 years that our country has been a member of the Council of Europe, it has been subject to all the commitments made to this Organisation. The political leadership of our country is striving to make our people prosperous, and not only our people: given the difficult economic situation in Europe, our State has initiated an energy project from which not only the Azerbaijani people but a number of European States can benefit. State policy leads to the development of our nation, where the priority is defending national interests. That the Azerbaijani people enjoy the right to live in a stable society is, it must be said, a rare situation in the modern world, and particularly in our region.

Building a democratic State is a long process consisting of many steps. We have successfully overcome a number of them and we recognise that there are still many challenges to address. But let me remind you that everything we have achieved we did while in a state of war with Armenia, with occupied territories and 1 million refugees, with innocent people dying every day. You cannot discuss Azerbaijan without evoking this state of occupation.

We often observe that some people demand absolutely perfect democracy from certain States while they lack democracy in their own country. We have always been, and will always be, open to dialogue, but to dialogue only, not manipulation. There are a number of issues which worry the Azerbaijani people. Why, in European countries, is the dispersal of an unauthorised meeting called the restoration of order, but when it happens in Azerbaijan, it is called a violation of human rights? Why does the imprisonment of a small group of so-called political prisoners outweigh the issue of 1 million refugees on the human rights scale?

The Council of Europe is an organisation based on co-operation between different sides. We are doing our best in a complicated situation to meet the demands of this Organisation within the co-operation framework. But unfortunately, we never see reciprocity. Main issues are put aside and the whole attention is focused on artificial, far-fetched stories and imaginary facts.

It is important to step up international efforts to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, to force Armenia to respect international law, to be courageous enough to admit the truth. Otherwise, problems cannot be solved. Let us work together in a sincere manner and in a real regime. This is the only way to achieve success for all of us.

Ms PASHAYEVA (Azerbaijan) – Azerbaijan, which regained its independence only 24 years ago, is implementing a large number of reforms in all areas, including the development of democratic institutions. Despite facing the aggressive policy of Armenia in the first years of its independence, with the occupation of 20% of its territories by Armenia and the creation of 1 million IDPs and refugees, Azerbaijan, as a result of large-scale works and reforms, has become a leading country in the South Caucasus. I thank the rapporteur for reflecting that in the draft resolution. It is deeply regrettable that the Armenian delegation and some of our colleagues protest against the reflection of this issue in the document. The representatives of countries who request that the word "Armenia" be removed from the relevant paragraph should remember that military exercises were conducted in the occupied Azerbaijani territories with the direct participation of the President and Minister of Defence of Armenia.

This issue was also reflected in the European Court’s decision on the case of Chiragov and Others v. Armenia just seven days ago. I urge the Armenian delegation to read this decision carefully. Armenia, which continues to violate 1 million people’s human rights after more than 20 years, has no right to speak and its effort to teach others something about human rights seems ridiculous.

My colleagues have informed you about the fight against corruption, the effective activity of the ASAN service system, and the projects implemented in the areas of freedom of the press and the media. There are hundreds of publications, broadcasting and online media and 65% of the population has access to the Internet. In such a case, it is impossible to speak of any serious pressure against freedom of speech.

Azerbaijan is a young, independent country and, of course, we have the same problems as many other countries. But it is important to note that work is constantly being done to resolve them and that positive progress has been achieved. Azerbaijan does not oppose fair criticism, but we do not accept double standards. And we really believe that this co-operation will be further developed with the support of our Assembly colleagues, who will objectively assess the work Azerbaijan has done, including the development of democratic institutions.