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The Committee notes the Government’s report, which replies only partially to the detailed comments formulated by the Committee since 1999. Given the fact that the Government had not submitted a report for the past six years, it is highly likely that the legal information and documentary sources upon which the Committee has drawn to make its comments are no longer in effect or up to date. More concretely, the Government had been referring to legal texts adopted by the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, such as the Sanitary Regulations for seafaring vessels of 1982, the Regulations concerning safety devices for seafaring vessels of 1988 and the Regulations concerning safety devices on naval vessels of 1991. The Committee requests the Government to clarify whether these texts are still in force, repealed, or otherwise amended, and to forward a copy of all relevant texts which may have not been previously submitted. It would also be grateful if the Government could supply a copy of the Commercial Shipping Code and the Charter of Service aboard Maritime Transport Vessels.

Article 3 of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that several organizations are involved in monitoring the implementation of laws and regulations onboard fishing vessels, in particular the State Maritime Administration established by Presidential Decree of 21 April 2001 and the State Labour Inspectorate, established by Presidential Decree of 27 January 1997. It requests the Government to provide additional explanations on the respective duties and functions of the various inspection bodies, including the State Health and Epidemiological Services, and the Azerbaijan Trade Union Confederation. It would also appreciate receiving information as to whether and how the fishing vessel owners’ and fishers’ organizations are consulted with regard to the framing of national regulations concerning the crew accommodation for fishing vessels.

Articles 6-16. The Committee recalls its previous comments in which it requested clarification on numerous specific points. These points having remained unanswered so far, the Committee is obliged to ask once more the Government to provide full particulars on the legislative or administrative provisions currently in force giving effect to the detailed requirements of Part III of the Convention, so as to enable a proper evaluation of the application of the Convention both in law and practice.

Part V of the report form. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide up to date information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including, for instance, statistics on the size of the fishing fleet (if possible, broken up by type of vessel and tonnage) and workforce, copies of official documents such as inspection guidelines or manuals, etc.