WNAM REPORT: November 12 marks the Constitution Day of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
According to sources, on this day in 1995, the Constitution of Azerbaijan, the main law of an independent sovereign state, was adopted through a national referendum.
It was the first constitution adopted in Azerbaijan after independence.
The first Constitution of Azerbaijan was adopted on May 19, 1921, at the All-Azerbaijan Congress of the Soviets. The new edition of the Constitution of the Azerbaijan SSR adapted to the Constitution of the USSR of 1921 was adopted on March 14, 1925, at the Fourth All-Azerbaijan Congress of the Soviets. The last Constitution of the Azerbaijan SSR, adopted on April 21, 1978, was adapted to the Constitution of the USSR but had certain peculiarities.
After the Republic of Azerbaijan regained its independence, serious work began on drafting the new Constitution. In 1994, under the chairmanship of President Heydar Aliyev, the Constitutional Commission began to operate, and in 1995, the draft was submitted to public discussion. On November 12, 1995, the first Constitution of the Republic of Azerbaijan was adopted by a national referendum.
The new Constitution of Azerbaijan consists of 5 sections, 12 chapters, and 158 articles. Annexes and amendments were made to the Constitution through a referendum on August 24, 2002, March 18, 2009, and September 26, 2016.
On February 6, 1996, November 12 was declared the Day of the Constitution by the order of President Heydar Aliyev.
For the fourth straight year, Constitution Day is being celebrated in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. As a result of counter-offensive operations carried out by the Azerbaijani Army starting from September 27, 2020, the lands that were under enemy occupation for many years have been liberated.
On September 19, 2023, local anti-terrorist measures were launched in the region in order to ensure the provisions of the Trilateral Declaration, prevent large-scale provocations in the Karabakh economic region, disarm and withdraw the Armenian armed forces units from our territories, neutralize their military infrastructure, ensure the safety of civilians returning to the liberated territories and the civil workers and military personnel involved in the reconstruction work, and restore the constitutional structure of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
During the measures that lasted for a little more than 23 hours, the positions of the Armenian armed forces on the front line and in-depth and long-term firing points, as well as combat vehicles and military objects, were destroyed by the use of high-precision weapons. The enemy raised a white flag. Thus, the constitutional order was restored in all territories of Azerbaijan.
