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Presentation ceremony of joint project â€œSupport to prison reforms in Azerbaijan â€“ 2008/2009â€ takes place

03 September 2008 11:32 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Tamara Grigoryeva â€“ APA. Presentation ceremony of the joint project of the Council of Europe, Norwegian and Azerbaijani governments â€œSupport to prison reforms in Azerbaijan â€“ 2008/2009â€ has been held in Baku today, APA reports. Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Veronika Kotek said that to be sentenced to prison was the most terrible event in the life of a man.
â€œPeople are sentenced to prison so that they can understand their mistakes and return to the society as a healthy individual. Members of the Council of Europe have determined common rules for prisons and every country should obey these rules. Therefore we want to help Azerbaijan,â€ she said.
Department chief of Justice Ministryâ€™s Penitentiary Service Azer Seyidov said that reforms had been carried out in Azerbaijanâ€™s penitentiary system for a long time.
â€œOur main aim is to combat facts of torture in prisons,â€ he said.
Norwegian ambassador Jon Ramberg said that his country also supported similar projects in Moldova and Georgia.
â€œWe are very glad that we help Azerbaijan,â€ he said.
The project consists of three stages. The project envisages monitoring in prisons, training for the personnel and reforms in health sphere.