17:55, 30 April 2004

PACE rapporteur dissatisfied at honoring of commitments by Azerbaijan

Andreas Gross, rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on Azerbaijan, expressed disappointment at the honoring of obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe by Azerbaijan and at the general situation with democracy in the country. "It is early to make a final assessment. We will visit Azerbaijan twice in the nearest four months - in May and in summer. During the visits, we will try to find out how the things are going on. However we can say already now that there is no enough progress," Mr Gross said.

Asked about the problem of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, the Swiss deputy said, "Some steps in this direction have been taken, but many more things are to be done." Asked about the situation with human rights and media freedom after the presidential election, Mr Gross made it clear that the situation was quite serious. "Look into the materials of the January session of the Parliamentary Assembly and you will see how deep the problems in this field are and how many thing are to be done to improve the situation," he said.

Source: TURAN Information Agency (Azerbaijan)