The Head of the Office of the Ombudsperson participated in the IOI Regional Meeting and International Conference

The Head of the Ombudsperson’s Office, Aydin Safikhanli,  participated in the Asian Regional Meeting and the IOI international conference on “Strengthening the Rule of Law through Ombudsman Institution” held in Lahore, Pakistan. 

During the conference’s session titled “Making the Rule of Law Accessible: The Ombudsman as a Bridge Between People and Government,” the head of the Office said that ombudsmen and NHRIs played significant role in the promotion of the rule of law. It was noted that the establishment of the ombuds institution of Azerbaijan was one of the important steps in the field of protecting human rights and ensuring the rule of law. 

The head of the Office broadly informed the participants about the ombudsperson’s activity in the field of protection of human rights and freedoms, including work as a national preventive mechanism against torture, for the protection of the right to information, promotion, protection, and ensuring the rights of persons with disabilities and children, and as an independent monitoring mechanism for ensuring the right to equality and non-discrimination. 

A.Safikhanli said that the cooperation with international organizations is very important for the Ombudsperson, and the efforts made in this direction were indicated in the ENNHRI’s Rule of Law Report as best practice. 

Furthermore, it was noted that although international armed conflicts should be resolved based on international law and the principle of respect for the law, Azerbaijan, in the long term, was faced with injustice and double standards; its territores were occupied, and the fundamental rights of over one million people have been violated. As a result of the Patriotic War, Azerbaijan restored its territorial integrity and sovereignty, and reinstated the violated rights of its more than one million people, as well as facilitated the implementation of the relevant decisions of the international organizations, and that, currently, important actions are being taken to ensure the peace in the region. 

The Head of the Office also spoke about the fact-finding missions carried out by the Ombudsperson in the liberated areas during the wartime and post-conflict period  and international FFM reports prepared on the basis of findings and sent to international institutions, ombudspersons, and NHRIs of other countries.