Are fines adequate?

Baku/02.06.20/Turan: On June 2, the Milli Majlis discussed in the third reading the amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses; and the amendments were adopted.  The talk is about the fines for not wearing masks in order to prevent coronavirus infection. According to the amendments, fines for violating the rules for wearing personal respiratory protective equipment during the coronavirus period come into force. The amount of fines ranges from 50 to 100 manats for individuals, from 200 to 400 manats for legal entities. Do the amounts of these fines correspond to the situation of the population? How do experts and officials assess this?

There is haste in this matter

Hafiz Hasanov’s lawyer said the changes were hastily adopted: “There is haste in this matter. Usually first reading is followed by breaks and discussions, and then the second reading begins. The adoption of amendments in the Milli Majlis at three consecutive meetings attests to such a rush. It seems that they are trying to fine people as soon as possible. ”

Hasanov stressed that the president is likely to sign the law tomorrow (June 3) and it will enter into force. Haste provides the basis for such a statement. In his opinion, the size of fines does not correspond to the living standard of people.

Sums are high

“Of course, the established amounts do not correspond to the living conditions of people. There is also a peculiarity of the legislative technique, namely that sanctions must be fair, comply with the living conditions of people, be enforceable, and their application should not cause problems. ”

Who breaks the law, who is fined?

The lawyer does not understand why under the expected changes the legal entity is responsible for citizens who enter a closed space (restaurant, shop, and cafe) without masks. “One of the unfair moments in the amendments to the Code of Administrative Offenses is that the owner of the establishment will be forcibly fined and will be liable for the visitor who came without a mask. How fair is this approach? Should a legal entity, having abandoned all its affairs, control those who come to the object to the store without a mask? From this point of view, the imposition of such a compulsory obligation on officials and legal entities does not comply with the Constitution and laws. According to him, justice and legal logic are violated here, there is such a misunderstanding as, for example, the introduction of unreasonable financial sanctions against one person for a violation committed by other persons. According to Hasanov, it would be more acceptable to use alternative methods, such as persuasion, education, and not a fine, in this sense 50 manat is a very large amount for ordinary people in the current situation.

There were reasons for this

MP Fazail Agamali says there are good reasons for these changes: “During the strict quarantine regime, the number of people infected with coronavirus and the number of deaths due to the disease significantly reduced. When the softening of the quarantine regime began, the number of infected and died from the virus increased. In this case, it was important to take serious measures to prevent such cases. ”

According to him, people need to return to normal life and protect themselves from coronavirus infection. According to the deputy, there are no such strict requirements; the population should take into account the recommendations, requirements and proposals of the World Health Organization, the operational headquarters under the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan: “It is necessary to use protective medical masks, observe the social distance, and observe hygiene rules”.

Follow the requirements, and you will not be fined

The deputy believes that the mitigation reassured people, they say the virus has already disappeared, and some do not take this problem seriously and are indifferent to the requirements. In his opinion, the only way to get away from this disaster and stop indifference is to impose fines: “The philosophy of these fines is to not encourage citizens who do not use face masks, are indifferent to this and do not comply with official requirements. There is a simple logic, give 30 qepiks, buy a mask, protect yourself, standing next to your family. Do not force yourself to pay a fine. Spend 30 qepiks to save 50 manat. ”

The deputy says that the main reason for such high fines is to strengthen the sense of responsibility of people in following the instructions of the operational headquarters, to protect themselves, and there is no other intention here.

What did the Milli Majlis?

For violation of the requirements established by the relevant executive authority on the use of personal protective equipment in epidemics, sanitary-hygienic and quarantine regimes, as well as for the inability to prevent violation of these requirements by officials, fines will be determined 50 manats for individuals, 100 manats for officials and 200 manat for legal entities.

This is reflected in the proposed amendment to the Code of Administrative Offenses, which was discussed in third reading at a meeting of the Milli Majlis on June 2.

According to the bill, individuals will be fined AZN 100, officials - AZN 200, and legal entities - AZN 400 for repeated violations from the date the decision to impose an administrative penalty comes into force until the end of the anti-epidemic, sanitary, and quarantine regimes. The bill was put to a vote and adopted.

The history of the issue

At the end of 2019, a new coronavirus was discovered in China. On March 11 this year, the World Health Organization announced the coronavirus pandemic. More than 362,000 people died from the virus, which is spreading rapidly around the world.

Mass events in this direction were canceled in Azerbaijan, as in most countries; on March 14, (classes in secondary schools and higher educational institutions were suspended on March 3). A special quarantine regime was announced on March 24 (until April 20). With the exception of areas of national importance and a number of important services, activities in most places were suspended. On April 5, the country introduced restrictions on movement under the quarantine regime. According to this rule, with the exception of employees of state institutions, as well as workers in areas whose activities are allowed, everyone else was allowed to leave the house when a medical need arose, it was necessary to go to a store, pharmacy or commemoration. To do this, they had to send an SMS to number 8103 and get permission. Quarantine was extended until May 4, and then until May 31 of this month. However, the ban on some work and services was lifted on April 27. On May 4, the procedure for obtaining permission for SMS in the regions, and from May 18 in Baku and major cities was canceled, and restrictions in general were reduced.