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Azerbaijan: Domestic laws regarding child abduction by a parent in the absence of any custody agreement of divorce settlement; the remedies available to the other parent; and the legal penalties facing the parent who abducted the child (2004-2006)

Current information on domestic laws regarding child abduction by a parent, or on the remedies available and penalties imposed in such a situation, could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. However, the following information may be of interest.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Family Code of Azerbaijan "recognises a number of important child rights: for example the child's right to (i) reside and be reared by his/her family, (ii) associate with his/her parents and other family members/relations, (iii) be protected" (n.d.a). In addition, Article 64 of the Family Code states that "parents can be deprived from parental rights if they abuse of parental rights" (UN n.d.b, 26). Azerbaijan enacted the Law on the Rights of the Child, which was adopted in 1998 (UN 19 Jan. 2006, 3; Azerbaijan n.d.). However, information on the content of this law or its application could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

According to information submitted by the Government of Azerbaijan to the Committee on the Rights of the Child of the United Nations, in 2003, there were 37 criminal cases of offences against minors, of which two were charges of abduction under article 144 of the Criminal Code; in 2004, there were a total of 25 offences against minors, of which four were cases of abduction (20 Dec. 2005).

The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Tourism established the National Coordination Council for Children's Affairs (Azerbaijan n.d.) in February 2001 (UN 19 Jan. 2006). The Council's mandate is the protection of children's interests and it has mainly addressed issues of health care, homelessness, and child labour (ibid.; Azerbaijan n.d.).

Azerbaijan is not a signatory of the Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (HCCH 16 June 2005; Interpol n.d.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Azerbaijan. 20 December 2005. In United Nations. Committee on the Rights of the Child. Written Replies by the Government of Azerbaijan Concerning the List of Issues (CRC/C/AZE/Q/2) Received by the Committee on the Rights of the Child Relating to the Consideration of the Second Periodic Report of Azerbaijan (CRC/C/83/Add.13). (CRC/C/AZE/Q/2/Add.1). <http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/0f5fb7fce2a6ff7dc12570f5002cd773/$FILE/G0545584.pdf> [Accessed 27 Jan. 2006]
_____. N.d. Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "Rights of Children." <http://www.mfa.gov.az/eng/foreign_policy/inter_affairs/human/child.shtml> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]

Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH). 16 June 2005. "Status Table: Convention of 25 October 1980 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction." <http://hcch.e-vision.nl/index_en.php?act=conventions.status&cid=24> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]

Interpol. N.d. "Legislation of Interpol Member States on Missing Children: Azerbaijan." <http://www.interpol.int/public/Children/Missing/NationalLaws/mcAzerbaijan.asp> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]

United Nations (UN). 19 January 2006. Committee on the Rights of the Child. "Committee on Rights of Child Examines Report of Azerbaijan." <http://www.unhchr.ch/huricane/huricane.nsf/view01/DE1E037FB6B16B3BC12570FC002AA12B?opendocument> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]
_____. N.d.a. United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Executive Summary: Changes in National Legislation in the Convention on the Rights of the Child Framework, Azerbaijan. <http://ceecis.org/child_protection/word/Azer_legSum.doc> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]
_____. N.d.b. United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). Review of Changes in Legislation After "CRC: Comprehensive Review of National Legislation to Ensure Capability". <http://ceecis.org/child_protection/word/Azer_leg.doc> [Accessed 30 Jan. 2006]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources:

Four oral sources did not provide information within the time constrainst of this response.

The Office of Children's Issues of the U.S. Department of State.

Internet sites, including: Amnesty International; Azerbaijan Young Lawyers Union; Baku State University; Child Rights Information Network; Constitutional Court of Azerbaijan; Council of Europe; Factiva; Freedom House; Human Rights Center of Azerbaijan; Human Rights Watch; International Centre for Missing and Exploited Children; International Labour Organization; Legislationline; Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Azerbaijan; Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty; Regional Network for Children in CEE, CIS and Baltic States; United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund; United States Department of State.