Assa-Irada, Azerbaijan
May 12 2006
Azeri MP praises UN rights body admission
Baku, May 11, AssA-Irada
Azerbaijan’s recent admission to the newly-established UN Human
Rights Council shows that the UN General Assembly acknowledges that
human rights are being protected and the democratic reforms are
successfully underway in the country, a parliament member has said.
`The membership is another accomplishment we have made,’ said
chairwoman of the permanent parliamentary commission on human rights,
Rabiyyat Aslanova.
Azerbaijan became a member of the UN body following a vote on
Tuesday, receiving 95 votes and beating a number of other countries.
The MP said Azerbaijan will become the first South Caucasus country
to be represented in the Council. `Neighboring states had limited
opportunities to become a member state. It is not by mere chance that
Azerbaijan gained the most votes [among them],’ she said.
Aslanova said that by gaining admission, Baku has acquired an
additional opportunity to convey the essence of the long-standing
Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh conflict it faces with Armenia to the
international community.
`Armenia was not admitted to the council due to the blatant
violations of human rights there,’ the MP added.
Also elected to the bureau have been China, Cuba, Russia, Saudi
Arabia and Pakistan, who have been roundly criticized for poor human
rights record. Countries such as Georgia, Armenia, Slovenia and
Hungary have been closed out of the UN list.*