Azerbaijan is marking Constitution Day today. The Constitution was adopted after a national referendum on November 12th 1995.
It is already the fourth constitution for the republic. The first Constitution of the Azerbaijan Republic was established in Soviet times. It was adopted on May 19th 1921 at the All-Azerbaijan Soviets Congress. Later, the Constitution was changed twice: on March 14th 1925 and April 21st 1978.
After Azerbaijan gained its independence, there was a need for a new Constitution. A special commission was established under President Heydar Aliyev. The project of the Constitution was presented to the referendum on November 12th 1995, which was supported by the people of the republic. After that, the basic law of the country came into force on November 27th 1995.
November 12th is a working day in Azerbaijan.
The chairman of the Azerbaijani constitutional court, Farhad Abdullaev, said that the 20th anniversary of the basic law is a historic event.
Professor of the Western University, political scientist Fikret Sadykhov, told Vestnik Kavkaza that the success achieved by the republic over these years is largely due to the Constitution. "Without a doubt, it has become the basis for political stability and economic development and set priorities in the foreign policy of our country, its role and position in the international center stage," he said.
"That is the constitutional norms defined in 1995 have become the basis for defining our priorities both in the country and abroad. I think that this base is so solid that even in the future it will serve to strengthen stability and determine foreign policy directions," Fikret Sadikhov stressed.
A political scientist and MP of the Azerbaijani Majlis, Rasim Musabekov, in his turn, said that "judging by the fact that the Constitution's fundamentals weren't changed, I think that it is adequate for our independent state."
"I think that the fact that Azerbaijan was declared by this Constitution to be a secular, democratic state with a mixed economy, that basic human rights and the social responsibility of the state were proclaimed, has determined that while the Muslim world is experiencing rather serious difficulties, Azerbaijan has overcome it all to a great extent, despite the fact that we have not yet emerged from the frozen war with Armenia, and a significant part of Azerbaijani territory is still under occupation by Armenian forces," Rasim Musabekov concluded.
