Baku hosts 23 Congress of the World Association of Medical Law

On July 11, 2017, in Baku was held the official opening ceremony of the 23rd Congress of the World Association of Medical Law (WAML) that would be lasted till 13 July, 2017.

The Baku Congress is the 50th anniversary jubilee congress of the Association. The main goal of the event is to create conditions for leading experts in the field of medical law, bioethics, forensic medicine and forensic expertise to exchange knowledge and experience. The main theme of the congress is “Medical Law, Bioethics and Multiculturalism”.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, one of the founders and the current president of the WAML, Professor Thomas Noguchi stressed the importance of the congress. He expressed gratitude to the head of state Ilham Aliyev and the organizers for the high level of organization of the next event taking place in Baku. After giving a detailed account of the history of the structure he headed, the professor described the events held annually in various countries of the world. Noguchi stressed that at the present time the world is undergoing extensive reforms in the field of medicine and medical expertise.

Mehriban Aliyeva, President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, was awarded the 50th Anniversary Gold Medal and Honorary Diploma of the World Association of Medical Law for special merits in the development of medical law, bioethics and multiculturalism. The first vice-president of Azerbaijan, the UNESCO and ISESCO Goodwill Ambassador, Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva is one of the first scientists in the post-Soviet area who has studied from the scientific point of view the bioethical and legal aspects of euthanasia. The awards of the WAML are a testament to the high assessment by the international scientific community and lawyers of the results of the scientific work carried out by Mehriban Aliyeva in this field, the projects implemented in her area in the field of health, education and science, as well as her efforts to promote and promote multicultural dialogue between different civilizations and religions In the name of peace, tolerance and global security in the world.

The award and an honorary diploma were presented to the Minister of Health Ogtay Shiraliyev for the transfer to Mrs. Mehriban Aliyeva, the First Vice-President.

Minister of Health Ogtay Shiraliyev, who spoke at the congress, informed about the model of multiculturalism of Azerbaijan which is taught in 15 countries of the world. He noted that in Azerbaijan, representatives of different peoples live in peaceful conditions, and this has become a world model. However, 20 percent of the territory of Azerbaijan is still under Armenian occupation. The Minister also stressed that at present many countries of the world are subject to wars.

After informing about the steps taken to develop healthcare and medical science in Azerbaijan, the minister said that the topics of today’s event are very important for medical workers. “Doctors treat not the sick, but the disease”, Shiraliyev noted, stressing the importance of mutual sincerity and trust between medical workers and patients.

Then the congress continued the work with reports on the topic.

More than 130 reports of professors and teachers from leading universities of the world will be heard and about 100 posters will be presented at the Baku Congress. The scientific program of the Congress includes approximately 275 theses. Abstracts of papers will be published in the international scientific journal “Medicine and Law”.

It should be noted that VAML was established in 1967 in Belgium by a group of specialists in the field of legal and forensic medicine with the aim of investigating multicultural and interdisciplinary problems in the field of medical law. The structure cooperates with UNESCO, the World Health Organization, the International Criminal Court and many national professional associations.

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