BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 8. Azerbaijan
reaffirmed its commitment to the promotion and protection of human
rights, highlighting the humanitarian consequences of the former
conflict, including landmines and missing persons, First Secretary
of the Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan to the United Nations
Shahriyar Hajiyev said at the Third Committee of the eighty-first
session of the United Nations General Assembly under agenda item
70: Promotion and protection of human rights.
"Upholding the inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights
of all members of the human family is of the utmost importance
today, as our world faces serious challenges arising from
escalating conflicts, deepening inequalities and the impacts of
climate change.
Securing human rights and freedoms is the highest-priority
objective, as determined by the Constitution of Azerbaijan, and
continuous legal and institutional reforms are being undertaken to
maintain steady progress in the promotion and protection of human
rights.
Azerbaijan attaches particular importance to cooperation with
United Nations human rights mechanisms, in particular the Universal
Periodic Review, the treaty bodies and the special procedures
mandate holders, by regularly submitting national reports on the
implementation of international human rights instruments and
maintaining dialogue with monitoring mechanisms.
Restoring the human rights of Azerbaijanis displaced as a result
of the former conflict has always been a priority area for the
state. Azerbaijan’s systematic rehabilitation and reconstruction
measures under the Great Return Programme have already enabled
96,000 persons to return to and live in the territories liberated
from occupation.
These efforts are seriously hampered by the extensive presence
of mines, killing and seriously injuring more than 400 individuals,
which requires genuine cooperation in rendering them harmless. At
the same time, the issue of over 4,000 persons registered as
missing is another remaining humanitarian problem.
Since the end of the conflict, 32 mass graves containing the
remains of 253 individuals have been discovered. These graves
provide further evidence of the wilful killing of civilians and
other persons protected under international humanitarian law.
Providing all necessary information on burial sites, opening of
archives and collection of witness statements are among the
measures to be implemented for realisation of the right to know for
the missing persons’ families. Azerbaijan will continue to mobilize
all its resources to shed light on the fate of persons whose
whereabouts remain unknown.
Accountability is undeniable and must be an inevitable
consequence of the offences committed. Azerbaijan has taken
decisive steps to investigate and prosecute serious offences
committed against its civilians and other protected persons during
the conflict, in full accordance with its national legislation and
international obligations.
Concerning the report (A/81/211) submitted to the Third
Committee by the Working Group on the rights of peasants and other
people working in rural areas, Azerbaijan emphasizes that mandate
holders must be guided by the aims and principles of the Charter of
the United Nations. Furthermore, it is incumbent upon special
procedures to exercise their functions in strict accordance with
their mandates, and the information they present should be
reliable, cross-checked and drawn from relevant and credible
sources, in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 5/2,
entitled “Code of Conduct for Special Procedures Mandate-Holders,”
of 18 June 2007. Unfortunately, the above-mentioned report does not
meet these requirements.
Sovereign equality, respect for territorial integrity and
non-interference in the internal affairs of States are fundamental
principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations. We
oppose growing trends of politicisation of human rights and double
standards, or interference in States’ internal affairs under the
pretext of human rights on various international platforms.
In this regard, we stress that certain issues brought to the
attention of the Committee, including those related to China, must
be approached with that understanding and in full conformity with
the mentioned principles," Shahriyar Hajiyev said.
