STATEMENT by the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan in relation to June 1 - International Day for Protection of Children

June 1- the International Day for Protection of Children is celebrated in Azerbaijan as in all other states.

As the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, I sincerely congratulate and wish success to children, parents, as well as all persons protecting the rights and interests of children on June 1 - International Day for Protection of Children.

Effective ensuring, protecting, and promoting child rights are among the important elements of modern challenge stipulating the development of every state and society. For this reason, the protection of the child rights and achievement of their advanced development as members of the future generation is one of the state goals of utmost importance.

The Constitution of Azerbaijan, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as some other international treaties that our State is a party to enshrine important provisions concerning the protection of the child rights and the State takes control over the implementation.

Child rights policy, established by the National Leader Heydar Aliyev and currently successfully carried out by the President Mr. Ilham Aliyev, serves to sensitive and careful approaching children and advanced development of their health, education, and upbringing based on the high morals and national values.

Furthermore, the positive developments as the result of the building of educational and social-care institutions, their re-construction meeting modern standards, reforms and programs implemented by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation headed by the First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ms. Mehriban Aliyeva are highly appreciated.

Within the mandate as an NHRI, the Ombudsman of Azerbaijan that constantly keeps in her focus of attention the issues of protection and promotion of the rights of the child; organizes series of awareness-raising activities with regard to this issue in Baku city and the regions of the country; conducts visits and monitoring of child correctional facility, pre-trial detention facilities, and temporary detention places. Also, the Office organizes meetings with children, coming from refugee and internally displaced families, and runs discussions at the education institutions with the participation of children.

On the initiative of the Ombudsman and in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, it has been successfully running peer-to-peer education on child rights in secondary education facilities across the country. In the process of hierarchic education, two training manuals entitled “The selected topics on hierarchic child rights education” and “Rights for Every Child” were used which were published based on the opinions, given by the relevant institutions of the Ministry, as well as Baku State University. The child rights educational toolkit prepared by the HRCA has been distributed to libraries of secondary schools, involved in this peer education.

In general, at the national level, over 190 secondary schools have been involved in the process of hierarchic education on child rights. At the same time, more than 11.000 distinguished pupils, as well as school principals and teachers were awarded certificates and letters of greeting by the Commissioner, respectively.

As this is of crucial importance to pay more attention to ensuring the rights of the child at a special quarantine regime that has been recently enacted in our country, as in the rest of the world, to prevent the spread of a new type of coronavirus infection (COVID-19) and to strengthen the fight against it, the Ombudsman’s Office has been taking necessary steps in this direction as well.

Thus, despite the temporary suspension of live reception of applicants at the premises of the Ombudsman Office and regional centers due to the special quarantine regime applied in our country considering the current epidemiological situation, the children, their parents and other legal representatives can apply to the Commissioner by sending appeals with electronic means (mail, online application, e-mail, fax), social networks (Facebook, Twitter), as well as a 24-hour hotline (012916) for immediate transfer of information on child rights violations to the Ombudsman.

In the frame of the activities of the HRCA amid the pandemic, the society was informed about the actions taken by the Office concerning the protection of child rights.

All appeals to the Ombudsman are being approached with great sensitivity, prompt action is taken to address the issues raised, which shapes self-defense skills in children exposed to exploitation, violence and other violations of the law, and achieves the restoration of violated rights.

Unfortunately, there are children among the victims of ethnic cleansing and aggression policy of Armenian nationalists against the people of Azerbaijan. In 1992, 63 out of 613 persons, murdered during the Khojaly Genocide, committed against the people of Azerbaijan, were children. 25 children lost both parents as the result of complete annihilation of eight families, 130 children lost one of their parents, and 75 children were wounded. As a result of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh armed conflict, about 4000 of Azerbaijanis have gone missed, amongst which there were 67 children.

Furthermore, though the ceasefire has been achieved between the occupant Armenian and Azerbaijan in 1994, until today, as the result of constant violation of ceasefire regime by the armed forces of the aggressor state, the fundamental rights and freedoms of children, secured by the Constitution and international documents which Azerbaijan is a party to, have been severely violated. So, consequently, up to date, 34 children became victims of Armenian terror, out of which 14 were killed and 20 were wounded.

Each of us must do our best to realize the right of all children to live and study in a normal, safe, and healthy environment. One of the main conditions for this is that the child has a normal family. The proper upbringing of a child in the family should be one of the main responsibilities of parents. They must be raised as useful, sound-minded persons for society, those with common sense, patriotism and brought up based on human values, loyality to the people and the state.

The care provided to children in all spheres should serve a very sublime goal, such as cultivating a person who is worthy of society, useful, aware of their rights, and able to protect them. We must raise children in such a way that they know their rights and do not allow anyone to influence, exploit, or abuse them.

Protection of children’s rights by the central and local executive authorities, state care provided to them, combating child labor and early marriage, preventing the spread of harmful habits among children, ensuring the rights of children with limited health capacities and their social inclusion, protection of children from discrimination, organization of online awareness-raising events, as well as of drawing and essay competitions on equality rights and other topics assume high importance.

On June 1, the International Day for Protection of Children, I, hereby, call on all state bodies, civil society institutions, including non-governmental organizations and the media, communities and everyone in general, to care for and support children for the sake of and with the participation of children.

Let’s never forget that children are our future, let's all work for their happy future, and let’s create an inclusive society for them!

Sabina Aliyeva

The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman)

of the Republic of Azerbaijan

June 1, 2020