Député de Chémakha – 2e année
Report
of Elkhan Suleymanov,
Member of the Azerbaijani Parliament from Shamakhi,
head of the Azerbaijani Delegation to Euronest Parliamentary Assembly and
member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe,
on his activities within a year
(1 December 2011 – 31 December 2012)
Petitions of voters
Within the last year member of the Azerbaijani Parliament from Shamakhi Elkhan Suleymanov received hundreds of letters, applications and complaints of various contents. In total, 897 written applications were addressed to him by the voters from 1 December 2011 to 31 December 2012, 301 out of those applications deal with social, 215 with economic, 381 with other problems, including financial aid requests.
Along with the written applications there were 513 oral requests; 102 requests were concerned to social problems, 157 to economic problems, 254 other problems.
All the received applications were carefully investigated, and appropriate actions were taken regarding each of them. In connection with some petitions, requests were sent to relevant bodies, and the outcomes were reported to the applicants. In addition, 195 applications were considered groundless in terms of law, and proper explanations were provided to the applicants.
Receptions and meetings with the voters
Within the reported period, MP Suleymanov had regular meetings with voters from Shamakhi. Moreover, 39 mass meetings, 37 press conferences and briefings took place, suggestions and problems of voters were listened to. Including meetings:
– with the residents of Shamakhi on December 28, 2011, on the occasion of the New Year and on March 16, 2012, on the occasion of the holiday of Novruz, with heroine mothers and mothers having many children on March 7, 2012; with villagers, whose houses suffered as a result of landslide in the villages of Meysari and Muganli on March 22, 2012; with the veterans of the Great Patriotic War on May 7, 2012; with the residents of the villages of Mirikand and Meysari at iftar (dinner) organized on the occasion of the month of Ramadan; with students, who earned more than 600 points at the entrance examinations to higher schools in the academic year of 2011-2012, as well as with S.A.Shirvani scholarship-holders and winners of Sabir reading competition on September 14, 2012 on the occasion of the start of a new academic year; with teachers and pupils, as well as with parents of the first graders of Shamakhi town School 2 on September 15, 2012 on the occasion of the start of a new academic year; with teachers and pupils of the school of the villages of Damirchi and Archiman on the same day.
Moreover,
– The Association for Civil Society Development in Azerbaijan (ACSDA) headed by Elkhan Suleymanov and the Fund of Protection of the Freedom of Speech organized a seminar on 14 March 2012 with the teachers of the Azerbaijani language and literature working in Shamakhi;
– the book “Great Azerbaijani poets from Shamakhi” written by the late Bakir Nabiyev academician of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences at the request and support of Elkhan Suleymanov, was published on 28 March 2012. The book includes essays by B.Nabiyev on the great Azerbaijani poets brought up by the ancient and rich Shirvan literary environment – Afzaladdin Khagani, Imadaddin Nasimi, Seyid Azim Shirvani, Mirza Alakbar Sabir, Abbas Sahhat and Mahammad Hadi. The editor of the book is Asim Rustamli, Doctor of Philological Sciences. The publication is designed for a wide range of readers;
– The presentation of the book “Dovrun deyirmani” (“Mill of the period”) published on the occassion of the 75th anniversary of the poet Musa Yaqub took place on 27 April 2012. The book was printed with the financial support of Elkhan Suleymanov. The book comprises verses and poems written by Musa Yaqub in different years.
– Meeting with the residents in the settlement of Shahriyar and the village of Adnali of Shamakhi on 19 May 2012; in the village of Charhan on 11 July 2012; in the village of Meysari on 30 July 2012; in the settlement of Goylar on 23 October 2012 on the occasion of opening of Sabir springs constructed with the direct support of Elkhan Suleymanov;
During this period 79 charity events were held, including:
– New Year presents were distributed to children (1150 in total) in all kindergartens in Shamakhi on 28 December 2012 on the occasion of the New Year;
– Presents were given to 100 women working in municipalities in Shamakhi district on March 1, 2012 on the occasion of the International Women`s Day;
– Presents were given to 176 heroine Mothers from Shamakhi on March 7, 2012 on the occasion of the International Women`s Day;
– Holiday gifts were presented to 70 martyrs families registered in the Shamakhi district on 16 March 2012 on the occasion of the holiday of Novruz;
– Meetings were held with 13 families, whose houses were suffered from the landslide in the villages of Meysari and Muganli, and holiday gifts were presented to them on 22 March 2012;
– The resident of the village of Meysari Valida Hasanova was rendered financial assistance for surgical operation of her daughter on 22 March 2012;
– The book “M.A.Sabir: his life and writings” by PhD in Philology Eyvaz Eminaliyev was printed with the support Elkhan Suleymanov in March 2012;
– Holiday gifts were presented to the veterans of the Great Patriotic War on 7 May 2012 on the occasion of the Victory Day;
– Aysun Akhundova was rendered financial assistance for paying tuition fees in April 2012;
– The Association for Civil Society Development in Azerbaijan (ACSDA) headed by Elkhan Suleymanov and the Fund of Protection of the Freedom of Speech organized the second recitation competition dedicated to the great satirist M.A.Sabir in Shamakhi. The recitation contest ended on May 18, and books were presented to the participants. The first place winners received 150 manats, the second place winners 100 manats, the third place winners 50 manats from Elkhan Suleymanov. In addition, the first 30 place holders were presented incentive diplomas. Moreover, each of 10 winners of last year’s competition and the prizewinners of this year`s competition receives the Sabir scholarship worth 50 manat per month;
– The opening ceremony of the Sabir springs constructed with the support of Elkhan Suleymanov took place in the settlement of Sharhiyar and the village of Adnali of Shamakhi district on May 19, 2012;
– The opening ceremony of the Sabir spring constructed with the support of Elkhan Suleymanov took place in the village of Charhan of Shamakhi district on July 11, 2012;
– The opening ceremony of the Sabir spring constructed with the support of Elkhan Suleymanov took place in the village of Meysari of Shamakhi district on July 24, 2012;
– The opening ceremony of the Sabir spring constructed with the support of Elkhan Suleymanov took place in the village of Goylar of Shamakhi district on October 23, 2012;
– Ramadan dinner events were organized with the support of Elkhan Suleymanov in the villages of Mirikand and Meysari of Shamakhi district;
– A meeting with 8 students from Shamakhi, who had schored over 600 points in the entrance exams and entered higher schools of Azerbaijan, took place on 20 August 2012, and each of them was assigned a monthly scholarship of 100 manats;
– Each of the Sabir competition winners and the S.A.Shirvani scholarship holders (19 persons in total) were given birthday gifts in the current year;
– All 34 scholarship holders were presented gifts by Elkhan Suleymanov on 14 September 2012 on the occasion of the new academic year;
– The two-fold world and European champion in freestyle wrestling Ruslan Surkhayev from Shamakhi was congratulated with presents on 14 September 2012;
– The Knowledge Day Event took place in the School 2 in Shamakhi on 15 September 2012, 100 first graders of the school were congratulated by Elkhan Suleymanov with presents, the assembly hall of the school was presented a microphone and sound amplifiers for organizing identical events, as well as a portrait of M.A.Sabir;
– On 15 September 2012, the elementary class pupils of Archiman village school of Shamakhi were presented gifts, including sets of school supplies by Elkhan Suleymanov, while the school was given a portrait of M.A.Sabir, a computer set and a printer as well;
– Two classrooms of the Archiman village school of Shamakhi were fully repaired on the occasion of the new academic year;
– In October three vehicles of wood were sent for heating village school in Archiman of Shamakhi;
– The roof of Demirchi village school of Shamakhi was replaced on the occasion of the new academic year;
– On 15 September 2012, elementary class pupils of Demirchi village school of Shamakhi were presented gifts, including sets of school supplies by Elkhan Suleymanov, while the school was presented a portrait of M.A.Sabir, a computer set and a printer;
– On 26 October 2012, meat was distributed to 70 martyrs families on the occasion of the Sacrifice Holiday of residing in Shamakhi and to the families of 34 persons receiving scholarships from Elkhan Suleymanov on the occasion of this holiday;
– Children of Kamran Musayev, a resident of Shamakhi were provided with school supplies;
– It was decided to pay 50 manats as a pension monthly to Leyla Eyvazova, a resident of Shamakhi;
– Gunay Aghajanova, a resident of Shamakhi, was rendered financial assistance for medical treatment of her children;
– On 27-30 December 2012, New Year gifts were presented to 1140 children enrolled in 22 kindergartens of Shamakhi, as well as to 166 Heroine Mothers and mothers who have many children, to 35 war veterans and to 70 martyrs families on the occasion of the New Year;
– On 29 December 2012, Elkhan Suleymanov visited children at Kindergarten. 2 in Shamakhi and presented New Year gifts to them. Later in his Shamakhi office he met 35 students and pupils, whom he grants scholarships, congratulated them on the occasion of the New Year and gave them holiday gifts.
Domestic and international activity
Along with his activity in Shamakhi district, Elkhan Suleymanov successfully carries out his activity in the sphere of foreign policy as a member of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and the head of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, deputy chairman of the Parliamentary Assembly and a bureau member, head of the working group on the Azerbaijani-Belgian inter-parliamentary relations. On his direct initiative and support, a number of major projects were carried out, a variety of events held in Azerbaijan and abroad. Including:
– On his initiative and invitation, a delegation consisting of members of the European Parliament and PACE led by Ilkka Kanerva, head of the Finnish delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, visited Azerbaijan on 9-11 January 2012. During the visit aimed at acquaintance with Azerbaijan and official meetings, the members of the delegation –head of the Finnish delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Mr. Ilkka Kanerva, member of the European Parliament Mr. Hannu Takkula, member of the Finnish parliament and the PACE Ms. Sirkka-Liisa Anttila and a former member of PACE Mr. Jaakko Laakso met the head of the staff in the Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan Ramiz Mehdiyev, first deputy chairman of the Azerbaijani Parliament Ziyafat Asgarov, deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan and the chairman of State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov. According to the agreement reached during the meetings, the Azerbaijan-Finnish inter-parliamentary friendship and cooperation plans were discussed, a specific plan of action was agreed upon. On January 11, the Finnish parliamentarians visited an IDP settlement in Agdam by helicopter.
– Organized by the Association for Civil Society Development in Azerbaijan (ACSDA) headed by Elkhan Suleymanov and the Joint Working Group on the Implementation of International Standards of Human Rights, an international conference “Crimes against humanity: the Khojaly genocide” took place on 24 February 2012. The views of different experts on the Khojaly genocide and its consequences were listened to at the conference;
– On the initiative and organization of the chairman of the working group on the Azerbaijani-Belgian inter-parliamentary relations, president of the Association for the Development of Civil Society in Azerbaijan Elkhan Suleymanov, the discussions on “The occupied territories, the forgotten areas: legal and humanitarian aspects of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict” were held in the Congress hall of the Belgian Federal Parliament on 5-8 March 2012. The deputy prime minister of Azerbaijan c and chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov, deputy minister of Economic Development Sevinj Hasanova, members of the Azerbaijani Parliament, director of the European Strategic Intelligence and Security Center Claude Moniquet, founder of the Lawyers Without Borders Pierre Legros, members of the Parliament of the Kingdom of Belgium, chairman of the working group on the Belgium-Azerbaijani inter-parliamentary relations Philippe Blanchard and other officials took partd in discussions;
– On 12 March 2012, the Association for Civil Society Development in Azerbaijan (ACSDA) headed by Elkhan Suleymanov and the Joint Working Group on the Implementation of International Standards of Human Rights organized a round table on the topic “Crimes committed by the Armenians against humanity: the Shamakhi genocide of 1918”. In his speech Elkhan Suleymanov informed the participants about the multilateral activities of the Association for informing the world community about the crimes committed by the Armenians against the Azerbaijanis and on the distribution of books printed in foreign languages within the framework of the project “Armenian atrocity in Azerbaijan – Shamakhi genocide (1918)” of the Association he chairs.
– Co-authored by Elkhan Suleymanov and PhD in economics Vurgun Suleymanov, a book titled “The armed aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan and the grave consequences of the occupation” has been published. The complex issues aimed at determination of material and moral damage caused to Azerbaijan as a result of the aggression have been studied in the book for the first time;
– The second session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly took place in Baku on 2-4 April 2012. Elkhan Suleymanov authored the idea of the book “Historical Azerbaijani states” published by Heydar Aliyev Heritage Research Center in Azerbaijani and English, as well as in the languages of other member-states (Georgian, Romanian, Ukrainian, Armenian) on the eve of the session of the Parliamentary Assembly, on 30 March. The book includes information on the historical Azerbaijani states, including Atabeys, Safavids, Karakoyunlu, Akkoyunlu. The advisor of the book is Professor Ilyas Babayev associate member of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan, Doctor of Historical Sciences, the creative group is headed by Fuad Babayev, PhD in political sciences;
– A conference dedicated to the latest edition of Chart Minuta, the quarterly magazine on foreign affairs of FareFuture Fondazione (Make Future) of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of Italy was held on 17 April 2012. Organized with the support of MP Mr. Adolfo Urso, the event was attended by nearly 75 Italian MPs, men of science, businesspeople, representatives of media and civil society. The magazine presented the book “The armed aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan and the grave consequences of the occupation” co-authored by Elkhan Suleymanov;
– On the initiative and invitation of Elkhan Suleymanov, a delegation consisting of the chairpersons of the Finnish youth organizations visited Baku on 2-4 May 2012;
– On the initiative of Elkhan Suleymanov Programme Manager of the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy Kati Piri and local representative of NIMD in Georgia Levan Tsutskiridze visited Azerbaijan on 3-5 June 2012, had meetings and exchange views with the hairs of the parties within the framework of the visit;
– On the initiative and invitation of Elkhan Suleymanov a delegation consisting of members of the European Parliament and the German Bundestag visited Azerbaijan on 5-10 June 2012. The delegation included the members of the European Parliament Horst Schnellhardt, Markus Ferber, members of Bundestag Tankred Schipanski, Thomas Bareib, Christoph Graber, former member of Bundestag and PACE Eduard Lintner, staff-members of the German Ministry of Industry Tim Brauckmüller and Dimos Gatidis. During the visit the guests met deputy prime minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov and got acquianted with the life of IDPs living in dormitories in Baku. The German MPs also met minister of Industry and Energy Natig Aliyev, minister of Foreign Affairs Elmar Mammadyarov, head of the Department of Foreign Relations in the Presidential Administration Novruz Mammadov, vice-President of SOCAR Elshad Nasirov, Executive Director of the State Oil Fund Shahmar Movsumov, mMinister of Economic Development Shahin Mustafayev and mMinister of Agriculture Ismet Abbasov;
– Presentation of the book “Republic of Azerbaijan – Kingdom of Belgium: 1992-2012” published by Heydar Aliyev Heritage Research Center Elkhan Suleymanov was the advisor of the book, then a conference dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Azerbaijan and Belgium took place in Baku on 14 June 2012. Charge d’Affaires of the embassy of Belgium to Azerbaijan Peter Booms, former co-chairman of the working group on the Belgium-Azerbaijan inter-parliamentary relations Alain Destexhe, head of the Information Department of the MFA of Azerbaijan Javanshir Mammadov, members of the Azerbaijani Parliament and other officials attended the event and delivered speeches;
– Presentation of the documentary “Memory of history: Shamakhi” prepared by the Association for Civil Society Development in Azerbaijan headed by Elkhan Suleymanov and the Eurasian Institute of International Studies, with E.Suleymanov being the author of the idea and organizer, took place in Shamakhi on 30 July 2012. At the presentation of the documentary dedicated to the genocide committed by the Armanian Dashnaks in Shamakhi in March 1918, members of the Azerbaijani Parliament Elkhan Suleymanov, Ganira Pashayeva, Gudrat Hasanguliyev, Fazil Gazanfaroglu, as well as the head of the European Journalists Association Adnan Fishenk from Turkey and others spoke about the importance of the film in terms of the exposure of the historical truth about the genocide committed by the Armenians and conveying it to the public. It was noted that the Armenian armed gangs led by Stepan Shaumyan and Lalayan committed mass slaughter of the Azerbaijani Turks in Shamakhi and in its 58 villages, massacred 8,047 people, burned 58 villages according to the incomplete research of investigation commission created then;
– On the invitation of Elkhan Suleymanov a group of members of the European Parliament (16 persons) paid a visit to Shamakhi on 1 September. They were accompanied by the members of the parliament Elkhan Suleymanov and Ganira Pashayeva. The European guests got acquainted with Shamakhi Medical Treatment and Diagnostic Center, as well as with the repair and reconstruction works in Friday mosque (built in 743), the most ancient and magnificent mosque in the Caucasus. They were informed about the genocide committed by the Armenian Dashnaks in Shamakhi in 1918, including the massacre of more than 1,500 people – children, elderly, women, who were burned alive in the mosque. The members of the European Parliament also visited the Shahkhandan cemetery of Shamakhi to pay tribute to the famous Azerbaijani poet and enlightener S.A.Shirvani, whose grave was restored on the initiative and support of Elkhan Suleymanov;
– The views of Elkhan Suleymanov on the release of Ramil Safarov were published in nearly 300 mass media organs of the world. Among them are “Wall Street Journal”, “Boston Business Journal”, “Bloomberg”, “Telegraph India”, “The Herald”, “News Times”, “CNBS”, “Daily Hearld”, “Japan Times” and others;
– On 27-28 September, Elkhan Suleymanov and the Institute for European Affairs organized an international conference on the topic “Building bridges” in Baku. The conference was attended by over 40 high-ranking delegates from 14 countries of Europe. Among them were local state and government officials, European politicians, former government officials, parliamentarians, ministers and other government officials, as well as incumbent and former officials of the EU structures;
– On the initiative and invitation of Elkhan Suleymanov a delegation consisting of political advisors of the European Parliament visited Azerbaijan from 31 October to 3 November. Within the framework of the visit, the delegation met the deputy chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Garay Farhadov, deputy secretary-general of the New Azerbaijan Party, MP Mubariz Gurbanly, head of the Human Rights Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Alimirzamin Asgerov, vice-President of SOCAR Elshad Nasirov, members of the Azerbaijani delegation to Euronest PA, local opposition parties, including chairman of All Azerbaijani Popular Front Party Gudrat Hasanguliyev, chairman of the National Revival Movement Party Faraj Guliyev, chairman of the Great Salvation Party Fazil Mustafa, as well as civil society activists;
– On the initiative and support of Elkhan Suleymanov, hearings on the Armenian- Azerbaijani conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh were held in the Finnish parliament on 7 November 2012. The chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov, deputy minister of Economic Development Sevinj Hasanova, members of the working group on the Azerbaijani-Finnish parliamentary relations Elkhan Suleymanov and Ayaz Orujov, as well as MPs Fazil Mustafa, Zahid Oruj, Jeyhun Osmanli took part in the hearings. Chairman of the Finnish-Azerbaijani Friendship Group Eero Heikki Lehti, former Special Representative of the European Union for the Caucasus, ambassador Heikki Talvitie, director of the Aleksanteri Institute on the Oriental Studies, professor the University of Helsinki Markku Kivinen and member of the Finnish parliament Elisabeth Naucler delivered speeches during the hearings. During the visit the members of the delegation also took part at a reception in the town hall of Helsinki. Meetings with the speaker of the Parliament of Finland Eero Heinäluoma, chairman of the Finnish-Azerbaijani friendship group Eero Heikki Lehti and Finnish businesspeople also took place within the frames of the visit.
– On the initiative and organizational support of Elkhan Suleymanov a conference titled “Azerbaijan is now in Europe. Establishment of confidence between Azerbaijan and Spain” was held, it was dedicated to the expansion of partnership between Azerbaijan and Spain, as well as to the grave consequences of the military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan in the Spanish Senate on 22 November 2012. From Azerbaijan chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov, the deputy minister of Economic Development Sevinj Hasanova, ambassador of Azerbaijan to Spain Altay Efendiyev, head of department on problems of refugees and internally displaced persons, migration and work with international organizations in the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan Gurban Sadigov, chairman of the Social Development Fund of Internally Displaced Persons, MP Ayaz Orujov, MPs Gudrat Hasanguliyev, Fazil Mustafa, Faraj Guliyev, Zahid Oruj and Jeyhun Osmanli took part at the conference. The event hosted by vice-president of the Senate of Spain Juan Jose Lucas and Spanish Senator José María Chiquillo was attended by 80 senators and their deputies, about 70 academicians, professors, media representatives, as well as well-known scientists, businesspeople and NGO representatives (more than 180 prominent public and political figures in total);
– A conference titled “Azerbaijan in the 21st century. Building confidence between Azerbaijan and Andorra” was held in the building of the supreme legislative body of Andorra – General Council on 14 December 2012. The conference organized on the initiative and organizational support of Elkhan Suleymanov was attended by the chairman of the State Committee for the Issues of Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons Ali Hasanov, the deputy minister of Economic Development Sevinj Hasanova, MPs Gudrat Hasanguliyev, Fazil Mustafa, Faraj Guliyev, Zahid, Oruj, Jeyhun Osmanli and Ayaz Orujov, editor-in-chief of the journal “National Assembly (Milli Majlis)” Ulviyya Abdullayeva and ambassador of Azerbaijan to Spain Altay Efendiyev. From the Andorran side, the President of the General Council of Andorra Vicenç Mateu Zamora, members of the parliament, representatives of the Andorran government and Chamber of Commerce, delegates of NGOs, civil society and media took part in the conference. The Armenian aggression against Azerbaijan, the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding territories, as well as strengthening the economic cooperation between Azerbaijan and Andorra, aspects of international energy security were among the topics discussed in the conference.
– On 27 December, the book “Shamakhi as a red terror target: 1930-1940s repressions” was presented, it is about the repressions committed in Shamakhi in the 1930-1940s. Co-authored by MP Elkhan Suleymanov, PhD in history Maharram Zulfugarli and PhD in history Dayanat Musayev and printed in Azerbaijani and English, the book comprehensively deals with the Soviet repressions committed in the 1930-1940s in Shamakhi, particularly the Takla tragedy and the Shamakhi process. The book contains thorough information on the Shamakhi victims of the Soviet repression machine.
– The photo-album titled “The second regular session of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly (2-4 April 2012, Baku, Azerbaijan”, which is the new publication of the personal website (www.elkhan-suleymanov.az) of MP Elkhan Suleymanov was printed. The photo-album contains about 200 photos, it includes the texts of speeches by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, by the chairman of the parliament Ogtay Asadov, by the European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Stefan Füle and by the head of the Azerbaijani delegation to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly Elkhan Suleymanov. The book was published in Azerbaijani and English, as well as in the languages of other member-states of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly (Georgian, Romanian, Ukrainian, Armenian).
– Elkhan Suleymanov became the winner of the “MP of the Year”, by an online survey conducted by the site rating.info. in which Elkhan Suleymanov collected 26% of all the votes.
Legal aid
The Shamakhi office of Elkhan Suleymanov regularly organized legal aid to the residents of Shamakhi. Over the said period 175 persons were provided with lawyers who rendered legal advice, while applications of 82 persons were directly studied upon request and their problems were positively solved.
Relevant ministries, state committees were repeatedly addressed by MP Elkhan Suleymanov in connection with the problems of Shamakhi. But some appeals unfortunately have been neglected, sometimes ignored.