Should relations with the Council of Europe be based on the interests of citizens or on the position of the authorities?

In a landmark decision, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) passed resolution No. 15898 during its January 24 session, temporarily revoking the voting rights of the Azerbaijani delegation until the January 2025 PACE session. The move was prompted by concerns over human rights violations and the increasing number of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, as well as the country's reluctance to extend invitations to PACE for assessing the upcoming presidential elections on February 7.

The resolution, while underlining that Azerbaijan is not excluded from PACE, emphasizes a call for the country to fulfill its obligations. German MP Frank Schwabe spearheaded the initiative, pointing to Azerbaijan's refusal to permit PACE representatives into the Lachyn corridor in 2023 as an additional factor in the decision.

Before the session, the Azerbaijani delegation issued a statement vehemently rejecting what they perceived as threats and blackmail. Following the statement, the delegation left the organization's premises.

Pro-government media, reflecting the sentiment circulating in official circles, suggest that Azerbaijan is contemplating withdrawal from the Council of Europe in response to PACE's decision. There are even considerations about refusing to recognize the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

In light of these developments, lawyer Khalid Agaliyev addresses questions from ASTNA, shedding light on the unfolding situation and its potential implications. PACE's decision has led to an escalation of tension between Azerbaijan and the Council of Europe, adding a new dimension to the already complex geopolitics of the region.

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Question: The PACE meeting adopted a resolution on depriving the Azerbaijani delegation of the right to vote for one year period. Is this decision fair?

Answer: The full text of the resolution has been published. The speeches and arguments given during the discussions are also known, and we have listened to them. The reasoning of the resolution is mainly based on 4 points. Firstly, it is indicated that the number of political prisoners is growing more and more and no steps are being taken to solve this problem. Unfortunately, it is impossible to find an argument that could refute this premise. Currently, more than 10 journalists are in custody on dubious charges. Most of them have been arrested in the last 1-2 months. Another reason was the avoidance of cooperation with the speakers of the Council of Europe. And there are reasons for this, the speakers cannot come to the country, hold meetings, meet with people who are considered political prisoners. As another reason, it is indicated that PACE observers were not invited to the February elections, as required by the country's commitments. Another important point was the coercion of the Armenian citizens of Nagorno-Karabakh to leave the country. This is an approach that we treat with special sensitivity and do not want to accept. Because during those events, Azerbaijan behaved quite cautiously from a military point of view. Perhaps, in order to avoid such considerations, Azerbaijan should have created sufficient opportunities for representatives of the Council of Europe to monitor these processes and collect the necessary information.

Question: Before the meeting, the delegation of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe made a statement. The statement said that no one in the world, including those in this hall, can speak to Azerbaijan in the language of threats and blackmail. After reading out the statement, the delegation left the building of the organization. How do you assess this step of the Azerbaijani delegation?

Answer: As we can see from the speeches during the preparation and adoption of the resolution, the main focus was on human rights issues. It was stated that the problems have already acquired a systemic character, the expected necessary steps have not been taken, and the implementation of the decisions of the European Court of Justice in relation to Azerbaijan remains problematic. In this regard, I have no reason to say that there was a language of threats and blackmail. For the most part, this step had a demarche content.

Question: What does it mean to deprive the Azerbaijani delegation of the right to vote for 1 year? What is Azerbaijan  deprived of, including the members of the delegation?

Answer: The Council of Europe is the most authoritative institution in European countries, and this institution itself has several other influential organizations besides PACE. For example, there is a committee of the Council of Ministers of the Council of Europe, the European Court of Justice and other structures. The event means that the Azerbaijani delegation will not be able to vote in PACE. They can attend meetings. Restricting the right to vote makes it impossible to influence many decisions. All this can be noted from a technical point of view. However, I would like to remind you that Azerbaijan's membership in the Council of Europe took place in 2001 after several years of hard work. At that time, the country welcomed it as a holiday and perceived it as a great success. Without dramatizing the current decision, we can consider it as the opposite. In the history of the CE, a similar situation has happened twice. Greece faced such a situation after the military coup, and Russia after the invasion of Ukraine. But the tragedy did not happen, it was shocked, moreover, it is necessary to remove the negative associated with the state of fundamental rights and freedoms guaranteed in bold letters in our Constitution. This is important not only for the return of the right to vote in the Council of Europe, but also for the interests of citizens, which is the most valuable thing for each country.

Question: Does Azerbaijan need the Council of Europe at all?

Answer:  The Council of Europe is the main international human rights organization of the European continent. With the exception of 1-2 countries with serious human rights problems, all European countries are united in this organization. Our Constitution guarantees principles such as human rights, democracy and the rule of law, and the Council of Europe has assumed the role of a locomotive in this area. Most European countries have made progress in this area thanks to the contribution of this institution. Representation in it provides countries with great benefits in the areas mentioned and not mentioned by me. In this regard, for a European country, its presence in it is very important.

Question: This has already happened in practice. In March 2017, the Board of Directors of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) decided to suspend Azerbaijan's activities on the Board of this structure.  Following this decision, representatives of the Azerbaijani Government immediately left the EITI. If Azerbaijan suddenly takes such a step and withdraws from the Council of Europe, what will we be deprived of as a government, civil society and society?

Answer: Comparing the representation in the Council of Europe with the union you mentioned is not very appropriate. As we said earlier, the Council is a much more efficient and a large-scale structure. The Council of Europe is an institution that provides the most successful mechanism for the protection of human rights and freedoms in Europe. Withdrawal from the Council of Europe is not a matter of 3-5 days. This process takes at least 1 year. It is also unlikely that such a step will be taken. Both the Government and civil society receive support from this institution in various fields. Most importantly, membership in this organization makes it possible to effectively protect rights and freedoms in a country with a population of 10 million people. Such a step would affect the life of the whole country.

Question: There are several cases before the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, including the European Court of Justice. What will be their fate if Azerbaijan withdraws from the Council of Europe?

Answer: Issues related to membership in the Council are regulated by its charter. According to this document, member countries can apply to withdraw from membership. If such an appeal is filed within the last 3 months of the year, its consideration and final decision continues until the end of the following year. If the appeal is received at the beginning of the year, the final decision is made at the end of the year. During this period, all procedures continue – both the sending  complaints to the ECHR, and the consideration of complaints sent, etc. The mechanism for monitoring the implementation of ECHR decisions also continues to work. Consideration and adjudication of complaints accepted for proceedings in the ECHR continues until the end of consideration of complaints under consideration. After confirmation of the refusal of membership in the Council of Europe, the opportunity to file a complaint is exhausted.

Question: What steps should Azerbaijan take to improve the situation?

Answer: Anger is a bad adviser. At this stage, the rightest thing would be to act coolly, making informed decisions. The relevant PACE resolution sets out in detail the grounds for restricting the right to vote. All the issues, apart from those mentioned on Karabakh, are really problematic. Whether it is media freedom, the situation of journalists, the issue of political prisoners or incomplete implementation of the decisions of the European Court, there are problems in these areas that have existed for many years. Over the past 2 years, 2 laws have been adopted affecting all political institutions of the country – "On Media" and "On Political Parties". These laws have received negative feedback in the light of EU standards. Taking measures aimed at solving problems in the field of these issues would be very useful both from the point of view of representation in the Council of Europe and from the point of view of the interests of the country's citizens.