Mammadova Rubaba Ashraf,
Ph. D. Candidate, Baku State University
E-mail: [email protected]
The Republic of Azerbaijan is acknowledged in the United States Department of State (DS) report as a country actively implementing a comprehensive program to combat human trafficking. Since 1996, the Republic of Azerbaijan has actively participated in the global efforts to combat human trafficking by signing and ratifying various international agreements. These agreements include the “UN Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others,” which the Republic of Azerbaijan acceded to through the Law No. 102-1Q in May1996. Additionally, the country ratified the “Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography” by passing the Law No. 285-IIQ in April 2002. The commitment continued with the accession to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime through the Law No. 435-IIQ in May 2003.
Moreover, the Republic of Azerbaijan demonstrated its dedication to preventing and suppressing human trafficking by acceding to the UN Protocol on the Prevention, Suppression and Punishment of Trafficking in Persons especially, Women and Children [7], which supplements the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime from December 2000 and the Brussels Declaration on Prevention and Combating Trafficking in Human Beings dated 2002 [8]. The Protocol on “Migrant’s illegal crossing of land, sea and air,” and the Final Protocol to the Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of Prostitution were also ratified through the Law No. 769-IIQ in October 2004. These international agreements underscore Azerbaijan’s commitment to addressing the complex challenges associated with human trafficking and promoting cooperation at the global level. The severity of human trafficking, as a profound violation of human dignity and a significant threat to human life, prompted Azerbaijan to enact normative legal acts and take consecutive steps in addressing this issue.