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Baku hosts seminar â€œEuropean Union-Azerbaijan â€“ civil society and human rights: work environment for NGOs in Azerbaijanâ€

21 June 2011 09:23 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Viktoria Dementyeva â€“ APA. Seminar â€œEuropean Union-Azerbaijan - civil society and human rights: work environment for NGOs in Azerbaijanâ€ has started in Baku today. APA reports that the seminar will last for two days. Making a keynote speech at the seminar director of human rights movement of the Foreign Ministry Alimirzamin Asgarov said civil society is a new sphere for the post-Soviet countries, including Azerbaijan.
â€œBut Azerbaijanâ€™s weight on the international level is rising. I think that Azerbaijanâ€™s civil society organizations will play serious role in the international arena. Todayâ€™s seminar shows that Azerbaijan intends to work with the European Union in the spheres of human rights and civil society,â€ he said.
Alimirzamin Asgarov noted that subcommittee on human rights has been established within the framework of the talks between Azerbaijan and the European Union and this subcommittee is a part of the dialogue between Azerbaijan and EU.
â€œWe consider that the experience of the European Union must be studied. With this view contacts must be increased, experience exchanged between the European Union and Azerbaijan,â€ he said.

Head of Political, Economics, Press and Information Section of the EU Delegation to Azerbaijan Jerome Pons underlined the importance of the development of civil society for the European Union. Jerome Pons noted that the EU holds a number of seminars and conferences on this theme in the region. He said such an event was held in Georgia in 2009, Armenia in 2010. Head of the section said the European Commission prepared new proposals on â€œEuropean Neighborhood Policyâ€, the new proposals focus on support for NGOs.
â€œWe expect the representatives of the NGOs attending this seminar to prepare their recommendations,â€ he said.

The seminar continues in four sessions.