The Milli Majlis Human Rights Committee held a meeting on 7 October.

Chairman of the committee Zahid Oruj said as he was opening the meeting that they were to discuss draft amendments to the Law on Combatting Human Trade and a constitutional Bill containing amendments to the Law ‘On the Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan – both having been put on the agenda duly.

The second-reading amendments to the Law on Combatting Human Trade were the first to be reviewed. It follows from them that, as per the proposed addendum to Article 7.2 of the law, activities of the participants of the National Action Plan are to be co-ordinated via the unsalaried working group acting under the auspices of the National Co-ordinator. The line-up of the working group as well as the manner in which it is organised and will function will be determined by the appropriate executive authority.

Then, the committee chairman Zahid Oruj moved on to the above-said constitution Bill (in the first reading), saying that, set to serve the goals and principles of the state policy in the realm of human rights and freedoms, the amendments were to ensure an optimised work by the Ombudsman, make this work more efficient, ensure implementation of advanced world practice in the country and, in such a way, help boost the international reputation of the Ombudsman’s Office.

One group of amendments was put together subject to the results of the on-going reforms in the country, with the purpose of streamlining the state governance further, optimising the workings of state departments and agencies and to make the spending off the State Budget more productive. Article 1.1 of the constitutional law is to receive concretisations for the avoidance of possible restraints on the application of the constitutional law to the said subjects as well as in order that the work of the Commissioner done in the field of human rights and freedoms is done properly. Besides, operating areas will be made more specific in several other articles of the law.

It is also necessary to put new articles in the law in regard to developing a mechanism to increase, again, the efficiency of the ombudsman’s work inasmuch as the preventive action in defence of children’s rights, monitoring such rights’ promotion, protection and maintenance, and restoration of infringed-upon rights with an eye to the recommendations of the UN Committee no the Rights of the Child and of other international organisations is concerned.

A discussion followed. The Bill was commented upon; questions were asked, remarks and proposals were made. The talkers were the deputy committee chairman Tahir Karimli and the committee members Fazil Mustafa, Razi Nurullayev, Elshad Mirbashir oglu, Naghif Hamzayev, Elman Nasirov and Bahrouz Maharramov as well as the head of the State-Building, Administrative and Military Legislation Department of the Milli Majlis Staff Haji Mirhashim Seyid.

The deputy head of the Human Rights Commissioner’s (ombudsman’s) Office Rashid Rumzade went through the agenda of the committee meeting. He said that the relevant experience of several countries had been studied whilst the Bill had been in the making. At the same time, the authors had taken into account many points touched upon at the committee’s meetings and many of the suggestions the MPs had motioned at the plena. The amendments to the constitutional law are going to lift the existing hurdles with the discharge of the Ombudsman’s constitutional authority and, on the other hand, will provide for prompter and more efficient restoration of damaged rights.

In the end, the MPs recommended that the Bills considered today should be brought up at a plenum of the Milli Majlis.

It should be mentioned that the other participants of the committee meeting included MP Hikmat Mammadov and Tural Ganjaliyev.

The Press and Public Relations Department

The Milli Majlis