“I welcome the release of Arif Yunus on humanitarian grounds and hope that more prisoners will be released soon and especially those whose health condition is a matter of serious concern,” Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly President Anne Brasseur declared today.
“That said, the concerns raised by the legal proceedings against Arif Yunus and other human rights defenders and journalists have not been resolved. I appeal, once more, to the authorities of Azerbaijan to act in accordance with the standards of the European Convention on Human Rights and their commitments and obligations to the Council of Europe,” the President added.
In Resolution 2062 (2015), the Assembly called on the authorities of Azerbaijan to “put an end to systemic repression of human rights defenders, the media and those critical of the government, including politically motivated prosecutions”.
On 16 October 2015, the PACE President wrote to the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, expressing her “deepest concerns” over the human rights situation in the country.
Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland has on several occasions expressed his concern over the detention of human rights defenders in Azerbaijan including Arif Yunus. The Secretary General therefore welcomes his release from jail as a humanitarian gesture and hopes that similar decisions will follow. -16D04-
Politics
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Head of the External Relations and Security Service of the EU Josep Borrel rejected the accusations against him and European countries made by the head of Azerbaijan at the COP29 conference the previous day.
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On Thursday, President Ilham Aliyev received the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, who arrived to participate in the COP29 climate conference.
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The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) today issued five rulings on applications from Azerbaijan. The case of "Afgan Mammadov v. Azerbaijan" concerned the complainant's exclusion from the Bar Association. Mammadov was expelled based on a complaint filed by a colleague, which he considered unjust. The ECHR ruled that Mammadov's rights had been violated and ordered Azerbaijan to pay him €5,000 in compensation for moral damage and €1,000 to cover legal costs.
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During the ongoing COP29 climate conference in Baku on November 14, a group of activists staged a protest condemning Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The activists also denounced countries that supply oil and weapons to nations waging aggressive wars. The protest featured placards with slogans such as: "From fossil fuels to peace!", "End war crimes!", "Punish the aggressor!", and "Phase out fossil fuel use to achieve peace!" among others.
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