Strasbourg court upholds complaints by Azerbaijani opposition members
ECHR rules on Azerbaijan violations
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) announced five new rulings and decisions concerning Azerbaijan on November 14. All rulings across ten applications include compensation for the applicants, with the Azerbaijani government fined over €33,500. Among the applicants are well-known opposition figures.
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Afgan Mammadov v. Azerbaijan
Afgan Mammadov filed a complaint with the ECHR in 2013 after he was expelled from the Bar Association. He had reported another lawyer for alleged corruption and abuse of office, accusing him of selling lawyer’s orders to investigative bodies. Following this, a disciplinary case was initiated against Mammadov himself.
The applicant questioned the legality of the Bar’s decision and refused to attend the disciplinary hearing. The Bar concluded that Mammadov’s actions were incompatible with professional ethics and expelled him. Mammadov challenged this decision in court, but the local courts ruled against him.
He then turned to the ECHR, citing Article 10 of the Convention (freedom of expression) and argued that the disciplinary proceedings and his expulsion violated his rights. Under Article 46 of the Convention, he requested reinstatement to the Bar.
The ECHR found a violation of his right to freedom of expression and awarded him €5,000 in non-pecuniary damages and €1,000 in legal costs.
As for his reinstatement request, the Court referred this matter to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, which oversees the implementation of ECHR decisions.
Ali Karimli et al. v. Azerbaijan
This case relates to the denial of permission to hold a peaceful march in December 2018, from Huseyn Javid Park to the parliament building in Baku. The applicants, including Ali Karimli, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (APFP), and four other opposition party members, claimed that the ban on their peaceful assembly violated their right to freedom of assembly, protected by Article 11 of the Convention.
The ECHR recognized that the interference with their freedom of assembly violated Article 11 of the Convention. The Court awarded each applicant €1,500 in moral damages and €250 in legal expenses.
Tofig Yagublu et al. v. Azerbaijan
This case concerns the use of unlawful and disproportionate force against participants in a peaceful protest in October 2019. The applicants complained of unfair administrative punishment.
The protest, organized by the National Council of Democratic Forces in October 2019, saw dozens of participants detained with excessive force. Tofig Yagublu was subjected to 30 days of administrative detention and police violence for his participation.
Tofig Yagublu is currently imprisoned on charges of fraud, forgery, and use of forged documents following his arrest in December 2023. He denies all charges, considering his arrest politically motivated.
Various local and international human rights organizations have declared him a political prisoner. In the communications for Yagublu and others’ applications, the Azerbaijani government admitted to alleged violations through a unilateral declaration and offered compensation.
According to the ECHR decision, the government must pay €3,500 to Tofig Yagublu for the first application and €2,340 each to Tofig Yagublu, Fuad Kahramanli, Razim Amiraslanli, and Goshgar Nuraliev for the second application. Additionally, each applicant is to receive €225 in legal costs for each application.
Rahim Valiyev, Yusif Garayev v. Azerbaijan
This case involves the applicants’ administrative detention and subsequent sentencing. Local courts rejected their complaints regarding the unlawfulness of the administrative proceedings.
Valiyev and Garayev argue that they were unlawfully detained and sentenced without grounds.
The ECHR found a violation of their right to a fair trial and awarded each applicant €1,250 for moral damages, costs, and expenses.
Vugar Rizali v. Azerbaijan
This case concerns the administrative arrest of Vugar Rizali under Article 535.
1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses for “non-compliance with a lawful police order.”
According to the case details, Rizali was summoned to the police station for allegedly insulting high-ranking police officers in his Facebook posts. He was charged with disobeying a police order because he did not appear at the station accompanied by police officers.
The Jalilabad District Court sentenced Rizali to 20 days of administrative detention on July 12, 2018. The Shirvan Court of Appeal upheld the lower court’s decision.
Citing Articles 5, 6, and 10 of the Convention, the applicant complained to the ECHR of an unfair trial in local courts and a violation of his right to freedom of expression.
During the proceedings, the parties reached a settlement. Under the settlement decision, the government must pay the applicant €2,500 in compensation for moral damages and legal expenses.
ECHR rules on Azerbaijan violations
