Azerbaijan’s record on tackling racial discrimination will face scrutiny by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on 3 and 4 May in meetings that will be webcast live. Azerbaijan is one of the 177States that have ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and so is reviewed regularly by the Committee of18international independent experts.
Among the possible issues for discussion between CERD members and a delegation from the Azerbaijan Government are
- Racial discrimination and hate speech, including against ethnic minorities;
- Legal framework to prohibit racial discrimination;
- Information and data on enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by various ethnic groups and by displaced persons and refugees, including restitution of property;
- Dialogue with minority groups;
- Asylum law, protection against refoulement;
- Measures to reduce and prevent statelessness.
The review will take place on 3 May from 15:00 – 18:00 (17:00-20:00 in Baku) and on 4 May from 10:00 – 13:00 (12:00 – 14:00) at Palais Wilson in Geneva and will be webcast at www.treatybodywebcast.org
The Committee will also hear from other UN entities and NGOs. More information here: http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/SessionDetails1.aspx?SessionID=977&Lang=en
The Committee will publish its findings on Azerbaijan and the other countries being reviewed – Spain, Oman, Rwanda, Georgia and Namibia - on 13 May here:
http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/SessionDetails1.aspx?SessionID=1072&Lang=en-0-
Politics
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On February 6, pro-government media reported 6 that Azerbaijan is demanding the closure of the “Rossotrudnichestvo” representation in the country, as this organization is not registered in Azerbaijan. Requests from Turan agency to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan to confirm this information went unanswered.
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The international organization "Women Press Freedom" condemned the arrest of journalist Shahnaz Beylergizi in Azerbaijan. A statement of the organization noted that this is the latest in a series of troubling state attacks on independent media in Azerbaijan. On the same day, another journalist, Shamshad Aga, was detained.
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Shamshad Aga, editor of the "Argument.az" website, has been found guilty in the Meydan TV case of smuggling (Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code) and sentenced to two months and one day in detention. The decision was made on February 6 by the Khatai District Court of Baku, as reported by Turan, citing his lawyer, Shahla Humbatova.
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On February 6, by the decree of Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan, Sahil Babayev was relieved of his duties as Minister of Labor and Social Protection.
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