UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women Rashida Manjoo has held a press-conference on her 10-day mission to Azerbaijan, SIA reports citing AzerTac. Mrs. Manjoo said she had held a number of meetings in Baku, Khachmaz, Ganja, Lankaran, Sumgayit and Garadag.
The rapporteur expressed her appreciation to the Government of Azerbaijan for extending the invitation to conduct this official visit to the country. She said the commitment of the Government to the promotion and protection of human rights is reflected in its engagement with international human rights mechanisms such as the United Nations Treaty Bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, but also its cooperation with regional human rights institutions. "Some specific legal measures have been taken towards achieving equality and non-discrimination goals generally, including for women. This is reflected in the adoption of laws such as the Gender Equality Law (2006) and the Law on Combating Domestic Violence (2010). The Family Code, which was amended in 2011, increased and equalised the age of consent to marriage to 18 years for both girls and boys."
Manjoo noted Azerbaijan had adopted various policies relevant to gender mainstreaming and human rights. She added some of these include: the State Program on Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development (2006-2015), the Employment Strategy (2006-2015), the ’National Plan of Action on human rights (2011) and the Development Concept "Azerbaijan 2020: Look into the Future". Furthermore, gender focal points have been designated in each Ministry.
She pointed out the establishment in 2006 of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs, mandated to lead and implement the State policy and programmes relating to women’s issues, was also a positive step taken by the Government. "I was informed by the Committee of the numerous awareness raising campaigns, trainings and studies conducted by them, as well as the establishment of 11 Family Support Centres in the regions."
According to Manjoo, the Government of Azerbaijan has focused on initiatives relating to the empowerment of women in public life, including through training and awareness raising activities. "The participation of women in political life has increased and currently the Parliament includes 19 women, including the Vice-Speaker, among its 125 parliamentarians. The importance of the economic development of women has been acknowledged, and attempts are being made to decrease the family responsibility burden on women, through the development of child care facilities, and opportunities have been created for accessing of capital by women entrepreneurs. According to information received, of the half a million entrepreneurs that are currently listed, 15% are women."
The rapporteur said her findings would be discussed in a comprehensive way in the report that she would present to the United Nations Human Rights Council in June 2014.
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