Azerbaijan lacks independent court - human rights defenders

Despite the Constitution's proclamation of Azerbaijan as a democratic and law-governed state, in reality the country does not ensure the rule of law, human rights and freedoms, and lacks an independent judiciary.

This is stated in the report titled "Legal Azerbaijan" by the human rights organisation "Political Prisoners Monitoring Center".

Over the past year - from 31 July to June 2024 - the list of political prisoners in the country has grown by more than 100 people,

To date, at least 303 people arrested on political grounds are being held in detention centers.

Recall that the majority of political prisoners have traditionally been religious believers, but the number of arrested activists and journalists has risen sharply over the past year.

Since August 2023 followed arrests of members of the Workers' Platform, an alternative trade union confederation led by chairman Afiyaddin Mammadov,

In November 2023, a permanent wave of arrests of journalists began.

To date, more than 20 journalists from "Abzas Media, Toplum TV", "Kanal-13", "Kanal-11" and other online publications are in detention.

Five activists have also been arrested in the "Toplum TV" case of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives, headed by its head Akif Gurbanov, were also arrested in the "Toplum TV" case.

Journalists and activists of IDI were arrested mainly under Article 206.3.2 (‘Smuggling of foreign currency’).

Public activists and believers were prosecuted under Article 234.4.3 (large-scale drug trafficking) of the Criminal Code.

Detentions and searches are carried out in violation of procedural norms, without the suspects inviting their lawyers of choice.

Courts ignore complaints about violation of the rights of the accused when imposing preventive measures.

Despite the fact that there are about 10 different preventive measures in the Criminal Procedure Law, the courts, as a rule, in relation to journalists, activists and believers choose the extreme measure of restraint - arrest.

Even people with serious health problems, such as the founder of "Toplum TV" Alesker Mammadli, who has a thyroid tumor, paralyzed activist Famil Khalilov, and visually impaired investigative journalist Hafiz Babaly, are subjected to pretrial detention.

As a matter of fact, judicial investigations are also not conducted objectively, without granting most of the defense motions, without video recording of journalists, and sometimes without allowing them to attend the trials at all. Judges actually rewrite the indictments into the verdict.

At the same time, judges who are strict towards political prisoners show leniency towards officials.

Thus, with regard to the heads of the Prenatal Center, responsible for the fire that claimed the lives of 4 newborns, the court limited itself to a measure of restraint in the form of house arrest.

In May 2024, the President of Azerbaijan signed an order to pardon 154 people, but this decision did not affect any political prisoners.

The legislative norm on parole is rarely used in relation to political prisoners, while the courts actively apply it to former officials.

The report also draws attention to the pressure on lawyers specializing in human rights.

In recent years, a number of defense lawyers such as Yalchin Imanov, Alaif Hasanov, Namizad Safarov, Khalid Bagirov, Intigam Aliyev, Annagi Hajibeyli, Elchin Namazov and others have been removed from the bar.

In July 2021, amendments to the Civil Procedure Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan’ were adopted, empowering judges to fine lawyers up to AZN 500 if they find that defense lawyers are deliberately delaying proceedings.

Azerbaijani courts do not apply the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.

According to a new Council of Europe report released in April 2024, Azerbaijan once again topped the list of countries worst at implementing judgments of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).

As a whole, the judicial system does not comply with the requirements of the Constitution.

"Courts pass judgments on the instructions of the political power.

The main role in the court is played by the prosecution, the court only approves the prosecutor's demands, and the role of the institute of the Bar is reduced to zero. The responsibility for political prisoners in the country, and there are currently more than 300 of them, is also placed on the judiciary. On 4 April 2023, Inam Kerimov was appointed as the Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Azerbaijan. He also became the head of the Judicial and Legal Council. But there have been no positive changes in the judicial system over the past period, on the contrary, the number of political prisoners in the country has rapidly grown," Elshan Hasanov, head of the Political Prisoners Monitoring Center, said commenting on the report.

* The Political Prisoners Monitoring Center was established in October 2014 by a group of former prisoners of conscience.