Baku: Penalties for the deliberate destruction or damage of historical and cultural monuments are being tightened, APA reports. This is reflected in the proposed amendment to the Criminal Code discussed at the joint meeting of the Parliamentary Committees on Law Policy and State Building and on Culture.
According to Azeri-Press News Agency, under the current law, the deliberate destruction or damage of historical and cultural monuments protected by the state is punishable by a fine ranging from 2,000 to 4,000 manats, or by imprisonment for up to two years. The draft amendment proposes that deliberately damaging movable or immovable cultural property protected by the state, causing significant damage, will be punishable by a fine of up to twice the amount of the damage caused, or by restriction of liberty for up to two years, or by imprisonment for the same term.
The proposed amendment further stipulates that the deliberate destruction of movable cultural property protected by the state will be punishable by a fine ranging from twice to three times the amount of the damage caused, or by restriction of liberty for up to three years, or by imprisonment for the same term. In the case of immovable cultural property, the penalties increase to a fine ranging from three to five times the amount of the damage caused, or by restriction of liberty for three to five years, or by imprisonment for the same term.
The draft amendment specifies harsher penalties for offenses committed under certain aggravating circumstances, such as actions committed repeatedly, by officials abusing their official positions, by organized groups, or motivated by national, racial, or religious hatred. Such acts will be punishable by imprisonment for four to eight years, with or without deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to three years.
‘Cultural property protected by the state’ refers to cultural assets included in the protection list in accordance with the Law ‘On Culture,’ as well as cultural assets for which a decision has been made identifying them as cultural property before their inclusion in the list or before a decision to deny their inclusion. “A significant amount” means an amount exceeding three thousand manats.