working / speaking notes / 2014 / asp2014_91 final

15 October 2014

27TH PLENARY SESSION OF THE

CONGRESS OF LOCAL AND REGIONAL AUTHORITIES

OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

ADDRESS BY Mr FIKRAT MAMMADOV, MINISTER OF JUSTICE OF AZERBAIJAN

ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE OF MINISTERS

It is a particular pleasure for me to address the Congress here today, on behalf of the Azerbaijani Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers.

At the outset, I would like to express my gratitude to the Congress and its Secretariat for the co-operation with Azerbaijan and the support rendered to the development of local democracy in my country. The Azerbaijani Government gives high importance to the strengthening of local self-government. Some of you had a chance to witness it during the Bureau meeting held in June in Baku. That was also highlighted at the meeting between the President of Azerbaijan and the Congress President.

Our Chairmanship is now nearing its end and the last five months have been very full ones. In my speech today I shall limit myself to the most important political developments at the level of the Committee of Ministers. I will also mention some of the Chairmanship’s priorities which I consider of particular interest to the Congress. I shall conclude with informing you about the situation of local and regional democracy in Azerbaijan.

When it comes to the political level, the situation in Ukraine has remained a priority issue for the Committee of Ministers. It has been discussed several times since this summer, including at the extraordinary meeting held last month during which the Secretary General reported on his visits to Ukraine and the Russian Federation. The Deputies also held an exchange of views with the Commissioner for Human Rights after his visit to Crimea. On 17 September, the Deputies took number of important decisions on the situation in Ukraine, in support of the emergence of a peaceful and lasting solution to the conflict. They firstly recalled certain fundamental principles of international law, in particular regarding the peaceful settlement of disputes and respect of States’ territorial integrity. Theywelcomed the Protocol signed in Minsk on 5 September 2014 and called on all parties to respect and scrupulously apply the twelve principles laid down in it. They encouraged the Secretary General to continue to assist the Ukrainian authorities in carrying out their reforms, and notably in preparing the parliamentary elections to take place on 26 October, which will be an important step in consolidating democratic institutions in the country. In the humanitarian field, the Committee of Ministers encouraged the Secretary General to examine how the Council of Europe can address, in co-ordination with other international organisations, the humanitarian needs and the human rights consequences of the military operations in Ukraine.

I am aware that the Congress has also been following closely the situation in Ukraine and has reacted promptly to political events in this country. In particular, the Congress mission to Ukraine in May to observe the early local elections and most recently the high level visit to Ukraine on 17 and 18 July gave way to a number of recommendations in the field of local and regional democracy. These initiatives are a concrete example of complementarity between our Committee and the Congress.

I shall now move on to the specific priorities of our Chairmanship. The first question I should like to address is that of young people. This I know is the over-arching theme which was chosen by the Congress for 2014. As it was stated by the Azerbaijani President in his speech at the PACE session, it is also a priority for Azerbaijan, which is shared with Belgium and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which will succeed our country in the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers.


We consider this choice almost an imperative. Young people are the citizens and policy makers of tomorrow. They are a huge asset in our societies. They have talents and skills that come naturally to them. However, to be able to harness this positive force of youth, we have to give our young people an environment in which they can flourish. As the famous Greek philosopher Diogenes said: “The foundation of every state is the education of its youth”. They should benefit from an education which not only gives them the tools to achieve personal and professional fulfilment but also the knowledge and interest to engage in the political, economic and cultural life of the towns and cities in which they live.

These are great aspirations, but not impossible ones. Our Chairmanship has therefore put much emphasis on young people, and in particular education, in close association with youth empowerment and enhanced access of youth to their rights. In this framework, we hosted a number of events in Baku. The first was of course the international conference on “Local democracy and youth” which took place in June and was co-organised by my own Ministry and your Congress. The conference was structured around two round-tables: “Improving access of young people to fundamental social rights: education and training – employment – health care – housing” and “Youth participation in public life: engaging young people in democracy”. The discussions were focused on the reality faced in our towns and cities and constructive in their content.

Three other events were included in the framework of this priority. The first was a meeting on the Council of Europe Charter of Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights where among other topics addressed, was the importance of making changes in the lives of children in vulnerable situations through citizenship and human rights education. The second was the International Youth Forum devoted to the No Hate Speech Movement. It was recently organised in one of the ancient regions of Azerbaijan and has been a crucial effort in pursuing this important European initiative. The third is the 4th regional ministerial meeting on the implementation of the European Higher Education Area which will take place next week in Baku and will provide an opportunity to further consolidate the democratic mission of higher education.

 

Let me also mention in this connection that Azerbaijan will host the United Nations Global Forum on youth policies at the end of October in Baku with the institutional support of the Council of Europe.

Local and regional authorities have a crucial role to play in supporting young people in becoming fulfilled and responsible citizens. This role is not easy – quite the contrary - but it is a vital task if we are to ensure the sustainability and quality of civic and professional life for future generations. 

I should also particularly underline the contribution of the Congress to the Council of Europe policy towards neighbouring regions. Tomorrow you will debate the report on creation of "a partner for local democracy status" with the Congress, which will allow for the extension of co-operation with neighbouring regions on a local and/or regional level. This in our view marks an important stage in the further enhancement of co-operation and engagement between the Council of Europe and the countries in neighbouring regions.

As you are aware, developing the Council of Europe's policy regarding neighbouring regions remains on the Committee of Ministers’ agenda and this issue is another strong focus of our Chairmanship. Thanks to our favourable location at the crossroads of the continents and historic relations with the countries of the immediate neighbourhood of the European continent, Azerbaijan is very well placed to have taken the initiative of organising a high-level conference on the neighbourhood policy, to be held in Baku on 7 and 8 November 2014. The conference is meant to serve as a useful platform for taking stock of the achievements made so far in our Organisation’s quest for promoting dialogue, co-operation and deepening of engagement with several countries of the neighbouring regions through strengthened political dialogue and exchanging views on how to better shape the future course of this policy. We very much hope that this important flagship event of our Chairmanship will benefit from high level attendance and contribution of the Congress.

Another priority of our Chairmanship is the consolidation of culturally diverse societies based on mutual respect and understanding. As one wise saying goes: “Communication between people of different nationalities enriches human society and makes it more colourful”. And I would say that multiculturalism is a way of life in Azerbaijan. The flagship event under this priority was the 2014 Council of Europe annual exchange on the religious dimension of intercultural dialogue which was held at the beginning of September. I am delighted that the Congress was also represented there and we had very valuable contribution of your new President Mr Frecon.


The event produced animated discussions under three different panels. Once again, we were pleased to welcome a number of young participants who provided positive input during the two days. It was also very useful for participants to hear many good practices under way in several countries with a view to promoting a peaceful coexistence of different ethnic and religious communities. Many of these were at the initiative of, or in co-operation with local authorities in towns and cities, demonstrating their important role.

These very issues were also discussed a couple of weeks ago at the another important event – the Fourth Baku Humanitarian Forum, which brought together prominent politicians, including former Presidents, scholars, Nobel Prize winners and others from 70 States and international institutions. This Forum also greatly contributes to global intercultural dialogue.

In our towns and cities our citizens, in their full diversity, need to find ways to live together in mutual respect, in peace and in harmony. We all know that we have a long way to go before this ideal is reached. But we also know that with perseverance, education, innovation and creative good practices, much can be done. And it is up to us, to make it come true. I know that the Congress has already done a lot in this area and that you will hold this very afternoon a debate on promoting diversity through intercultural education and communication strategies. We welcome these initiatives and I hope we shall all continue to further this priority of the Chairmanship. 

The final priority I should like to mention is one of particular importance to Azerbaijan but also to the Committee of Ministers and your Congress - and that is the fight against corruption.

As we all know, corruption is a scourge which undermines democracy and threatens the rule of law, and the fight against it, is, therefore, a priority of the Council of Europe. It has also been a priority of the Azerbaijani Government and considerable progress has been achieved in our country. In this respect, we hosted a high-level conference on combating corruption this summer. It was attended by General Prosecutors, Ministers of Justice, Heads of Anticorruption agencies and an impressive selection of experts and provided an opportunity to explore key issues in implementing anti-corruption laws, taking into account international standards and national practices.

Moreover, in November Baku will host the 3rd session of the Assembly of the International Anticorruption Academy. Established with the UN initiative it is the first global institution of its kind, dedicated to overcoming weaknesses in knowledge and practice in the field of anti-corruption. I believe that this event will also provide additional impetus to the global fight against corruption.

I know the particular interest of your Congress in the fight against corruption again demonstrated this week during your thematic debate on promoting public ethics and preventing corruption at regional level. I can only encourage your endeavours in this respect.

These have been some of our priorities during the Azerbaijani Chairmanship but they are obviously objectives which will continue long after our Chairmanship has ended. We hope that the Congress too, will continue to work on these important issues.

Now in my national capacity, I should like to inform the Congress on some relevant developments concerning the youngest institution of local governance in Azerbaijan, which attaches great importance to the reinforcement of municipalities.

That is why legislation in this area is being gradually improved. In general, more than 20 laws and about 5 hundred legal acts were adopted to govern the organisation and operation of municipalities.

I would like to thank the Congress for the assistance provided in this area. Indeed, the monitoring missions and the recommendations produced have been helpful in terms of identifying areas which could be further improved.

The President of Azerbaijan has endorsed National Action Plans on human rights, on the promotion of open government, on fighting corruption, which pay special attention to the development of local self-governing bodies.


Alongside this, the Azerbaijan 2020 Development Concept, which sets out strategic goals for the future development of our country amongst other things, identifies such priorities as strengthening the capacity of municipalities and the training of human resources in municipal management.

Furthermore, I would like to underline the key role of the newly adopted law on public participation in the development of democratic institutions. This law provides for closer interaction between the public and municipalities as well as for ensuring the openness and transparency of their activities.

In order to considerably strengthen municipalities in the country, increase their capacity and promote better use of financial and other resources as well as taking into account the wishes of the population and those of municipalities, the process of merging municipalities took place. As a result, the number of municipalities went down by almost 40%. And now we have 1700 local self-government bodies. Taking into account the obvious positive results of this endeavour, this practice is to be continued. It will facilitate the further development of the municipalities.

Moreover, taking into account the key role of municipal associations in terms of promoting local democracy,
co-ordination and organisation of municipal activities, we managed to create national associations of municipalities. They bring together city, settlement and village municipalities. It was done within the joint action plan with the Congress much earlier than scheduled thanks to the will expressed by the municipalities. Regional associations were created in Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic. Today, thanks to the successful activities of the associations, they have become a leading force, which being actively involved in consultations regularly puts forward important initiatives, studies and disseminates best practices, explores good relations with public agencies and NGOs.

Today, our municipalities also benefit from international co-operation as Azerbaijan already fully implements Article 10, paragraph 3, of the European Charter of Local Self-Government about international co-operation.

Moreover, along with being engaged in internationally spread activities such as "Local Democracy Week in Europe" and Open Doors Day Azerbaijani municipalities hold nationwide conventions. These meetings are held openly with the participation of the public and the media. On one hand, they serve in the popularisation of municipalities, raising awareness about their activities, including many of their projects, which cover the renovation of towns and villages, building many social facilities, such as kindergartens, medical clinics and sport complexes, laying local roads, provision of drinking water and irrigation, resolution of environmental issues etc. On the other hand, these forums are an excellent platform to discuss current problems, attract relevant institutions and society in general to their resolution and build up actions on the further improvement of their activities.

I would also like to share a positive trend, which is observed regarding the composition of municipalities. It concerns the engagement of youth that coincides with the priorities of the Congress and Azerbaijan’s chairmanship. Thus, in the last elections, a number of young people has increased significantly and reached almost 30%. The same pattern applies to women which is equally important. I hope that at the next elections this trend will grow further.

Let me also inform the Congress that in May this year, in Baku, together with the Council of Europe’s Secretary General Mr Thorbjørn Jagland, we launched the 2014-2016 Action Plan for Azerbaijan. This important document has a special section on local democracy, which was worked out taking into account the recommendations of the Congress. We have already started working towards its execution. Two weeks ago, a senior Council of Europe official in the area of local and regional democracy visited Baku to discuss the implementation of the Plan.

I would like to share the latest developments regarding the implementation of the Congress recommendation. We have prepared a set of proposals aimed at improving the existing legislation and presented them to our Parliament. MPs willingly supported this initiative and have adopted relevant laws which became effective two months ago.

As you can see, this process in Azerbaijan is permanent and I would like to assure you that the ongoing reforms due to our common efforts will yield good results.


However, unfortunately, occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani lands as a result of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict makes it impossible to organise local self-government in these territories, and one million Azerbaijanis who became refugees and internally displaced persons have been deprived of the right to self-government.

To conclude, I would like to pay tribute to your outgoing President, Mr Van Staa, for his commitment and his relentless efforts to raise awareness of the Congress, its activities and its potential. May I also congratulate
Mr Frecon on his election to the post of President of the Congress. I am confident that the Committee of Ministers will maintain the same excellent relations under your Presidency, Mr Frecon, and wish you every success while accomplishing your very responsible mission for the sake of the development of local democracy all over the Europe.