Today.Az » Society » Official: Anti-corruption laws in Azerbaijan go in line with int'l standards
22 May 2013 [17:25] - Today.Az
By AzerNews
Azerbaijan has joined numerous international documents on combating corruption and its legislation completely complies with international standards, a representative of the state-run anti-corruption body has said.
Vusal Huseynov, Secretary of the Commission on Combating Corruption, in his speech at an information session of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC), which took place in Baku on May 21, informed the participants about the commission's work.
The application of information and communication technologies plays an important role in combating corruption. Moreover, ASAN service was created in Azerbaijan, which prevents the loss of time for citizens and helps to combat corruption in the country, Huseynov said.
The Commission secretary noted that the anti-corruption policy should be flexible and international cooperation plays an important role in this respect.
In his remarks, deputy speaker of the Azerbaijani Parliament Valeh Alasgarov said that Azerbaijan is carrying out reforms in order to improve the anti-corruption legislation.
GOPAC Executive Director Akaash Maharaj, for his part, said that the active role of parliamentarians in this area is very important as they represent the nation.
The national representations as well as six regional representations of GOPAC are operating in the member countries. The main directions of their activity are to develop legislative framework for anticorruption combat in the country, to maintain effectiveness of this policy, to establish ties with the civil society, to develop a relevant national action plan and to provide monitoring, Maharaj said.
Lawmakers would play a leading role in this sphere and contribute to the expectations of the society, he said.
Azerbaijani MP Ali Huseynli, addressing the event, cited the importance of holding a session of GOPAC in Baku in 2015 and stressed that the branch of the organization in Azerbaijan could replace its European entity.
"Azerbaijani parliamentarians have a potential to represent the European bloc of the organization," Huseynli said.
Anti-corruption efforts
Azerbaijan is making an effort to ensure the consistency of measures in the combat against corruption and promotion of good governance, to increase transparency in the work of government agencies and to promote the principles of open government.
The National Action Plan on Open Government and the National Action Plan on Combating Corruption covering the period 2012-2015 were adopted by a decree of the President of Azerbaijan on September 5, 2012.
The Action Plan on Open Government defines measures for state bodies on delivering information about their activity to the public, increasing the role of the public in decision-making, expanding online services and increasing the quality of services provided to citizens.
Drafts of both Action Plans have been developed by the Commission on Combating Corruption on the assignment of the Azerbaijani President.
Implementation of these reforms will increase the reputation of state bodies, take the state-citizen relationship to a new level of quality and increase public confidence in the government.
Furthermore, the Commission on Combating Corruption was established in 2005 as a specialized entity which consists of 15 members, representing the executive, legislative and judicial branches of power.
Azerbaijan has also joined the UN Convention against Corruption, the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption of the Council of Europe, the Civil Law Convention on Corruption of the Council of Europe as well as the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime.
GOPAC was established in 2002 as an international network of parliamentarians dedicated to good governance and combating corruption throughout the world.
Since its inception, GOPAC has provided information and analysis, established international benchmarks, and improved public awareness through a combination of global pressure and national action.
GOPAC is the only international network of parliamentarians focused solely on combating corruption. Its members represent more than 50 countries in all regions of the world.
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