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Azerbaijani MP proposes minimal score for membership of Bar Association be reduced from 60 to 50

01 February 2018 10:58 (UTC +04:00)

At today's meeting of the Azerbaijani parliament, MP Gudrat Hasanguliyev made a proposal on entrance exams for membership of the Bar Association.

According to him, at present, there are 8 lawyers per 100 people in Azerbaijan, which is a very small ratio.

He noted that the number of lawyers in European countries is 40-45 times more than in Azerbaijan.

"There were about 2,000 requests for membership in the Bar Association, but unfortunately, only 600 people passed, so it is necessary to adopt a new law on lawyers during the spring session. I recommend that the minimal score be reduced from 60 to 50. In this case, a large number of new members may be elected to the Bar Association. There are some districts where there is a judge, but no lawyer. Civil rights should seriously concern us. We must take on at least 3 judges and 4-5 attorneys in each district. Even if all of those applicants were members of the Board, the number would still be 20 times fewer compared to the European countries. That's why we need to make radical decisions,” said the lawmaker.

Hasanguliyev backed Siyavush Novruzov’s proposal to announce an amnesty.

He said that it would be better to announce an amnesty on the occasion of national leader Heydar Aliyev’s 95th birth anniversary, as well as the 100th anniversary of establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

“This year also marks the 80th birth anniversary of late president Abulfaz Elchibey. I also think that the adoption of an amnesty act is important in terms of our national interests. In particular, the amnesty can be applied to all persons except those who committed serious crimes. But this does not mean that all these persons must be freed. Punishments against these persons can be mitigated,” he added.

Vice Speaker Ziyafat Asgarov also referred to the problem with the number of lawyers in the country.