According to 2009 census returns various national minorities and ethnic groups
constitute 8.1% of the total population of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
The Constitution of Azerbaijan ensures personal inviolability of all citizens living in the
country and provides individual rights and liberties. Due to time constraints and to avoid
repetition I won`t dwell upon on all legal measures taken by the Government of
Azerbaijan on the protection and promotion of minorities rights, but nevertheless I
would like to stress that the Government of Azerbaijan along with other universal human
rights conventions has ratified the Council of Europe`s Framework Convention for the
Protection of National Minorities in 2000, which we believe to be an important legal tool
for guidance in the promotion and protection of national minorities rights.
We are of a view that, the integration of national minorities into socio-political,
socio-economic and cultural life is closely connected with the effective participation of
national minorities in the economic life. We believe that the full participation in economic
life as well as economic prosperity is a credible guarantee of enjoyment of human rights
and main freedoms.
We want to stress that the military aggression of neighboring Armenia against
Azerbaijan, the presence of over a million Azerbaijani refugees and IDPs in the country,
continued occupation of 20% of our territories, and difficult wartime conditions, hamper
the full size economic growth, but despite all these impeding facts a national human
rights policy pursued by Azerbaijan brought important accomplishments in protecting
rights and freedoms of national minorities in many spheres including the participation in
economic life.
Along with legislative reforms, the Government of Azerbaijan has realized the following
programs and actions which are being positively contributed to the promotion and
protection of human rights, like “The state program on socio-economic development of
regions in the Republic of Azerbaijan (2004-2008)” endorsed in 2004, “The action plan