European Court of Human Rights Announced Decision in Case of Journalist Sevinj Vagifgyzy

Baku / 14.05.20 / Turan: The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) today announced a decision on the complaint of the journalist Sevinj Vagifgyzy.

The complaint was related to the ban imposed by the Azerbaijani authorities on her departure from the country.

The European Court reports that the Azerbaijani government recognized a violation of the rights of a journalist under Art. 4 (freedom of movement) to Protocol No. 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Art. 13 (the right to effective defense) of the Convention, and agreed to pay the journalist compensation of 5 thousand euros.

The ECtHR found the government’s proposal justified and found the case closed.

Recall that the ban on foreign travel of Vagifgyzy and groups of other journalists was introduced in 2014 in connection with a criminal case against the Internet channel Meydan.tv. After that, those who collaborated with this Berlin-based channel were repeatedly called to the prosecutor's office, demanding to admit that they were being financed from abroad. The ban was lifted only in May 2019. -16D-