Home > 1.1.3 Submission of candidatures > AZERBAIJAN - Joint Opinion on the Draft Law on amendments and changes to the Electoral Code adopted by the Council for Democratic Elections and the Venice Commission
 
 
 
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Paragraph 14
 

The Constitutional Court considered that the legal meaning of Article 100 of the Constitution "having no obligations towards other states" implied the existence of obligations based on relationships causing a citizen to be bound to and dependent on foreign states. Concerning the legal meaning of one of the requirements: "having no obligations before other states" in Article 13.3.4 of the law, the Court explained that depending on the regime granting permission to stay in a country, a foreigner may have different obligations to the State where he/she lives such as: registration, prohibition on leaving the place of residence or the territory of the state for a period exceeding the specified terms, payment of taxes in certain cases, registration for military service upon reaching a certain age, or other obligations in accordance with the legislation of that state. Although the Constitutional Court provided these specific examples, it also stated that “obligation” means “the necessity to carry out something”. The phrase “necessity to carry out something” is ambiguous and, even with the specific examples given, whether there exists “necessity” to act depends on the domestic law of the specific country. Thus the Constitutional Court decision has not resolved the ambiguity that exists in Article 13.3.4.