Tentacles of the octopus of the Azerbaijani corruption creep up to the Strasbourg court

A large group of opposition politicians, independent lawyers and civil society activists  of Azerbaijan have sent an appeal to the President of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) Nicolas Bratza. The letter expressed concern about some controversial moments in the work of the Strasbourg court in respect of complaints from Azerbaijan. The appeal was made following a round table organized on Friday, July 20, by a "Public Chamber." The meeting expressed dissatisfaction with the slowness of the consideration the cases of Azerbaijan, and the adoption of a total of 50 decisions on Azerbaijan over 10 years of the country joining the  jurisdiction of the Strasbourg Court.  The  ECHR only twice used the opportunity to deal with cases in Azerbaijan before time ( the case of  the journalist Eynulla  Fatullayev, and the leader of the Democratic Party, Sardar Jalaloglu.)

    "It's very little  for  the country where  are kept in jails  for seven or eight  years for political reasons, and  where political prisoners die in prisons,"  said the leader of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA).

    The ECHR sets adequately low level of cash compensation for violated rights of Azerbaijani citizens. Of particular concern t is the simultaneous refusal  on one day (May 10, 2012)  at the reception of the ECHR  of approximately 50 complaints from Azerbaijan. Moreover, the decision was adopted by one judge Linos Alekxandre Sicilianos from Greece. Participants suspect that  "the tentacles of an octopus  of Azerbaijani corruption  has crept up  to the Strasbourg court." In his interview with the correspondent of Turan, the  head of the Legal Enlightenment Society, Intigam Aliyev, said that the new rules of the ECHR in order to speed up the complaints of cases, allow for "admissibility" of  taking complaints to the production by a single judge. (Previously, such a decision was  taken by a  Board  three judges.) However, it is allowed  also in cases where the cases are  unacceptable. And even in such case  the judge is not physically able  to consider during one day about 50 cases. 

   Moreover,  Aliev said,  the noted  complaints  from Azerbaijan were received by the ECHR in 2008-09, even when there was a rule to consider the admissibility of cases for investigation  by  three judges of the ECHR. According to the authors  of the appeal to the ECHR, the judge  from Greece formally reacted to the consideration of applications and found them "acceptable" only on the basis of legal opinion of the Secretariat of the Strasbourg Court of Azerbaijan, Vugar Fataliyev, "well-known  for his close relations  with the government of Azerbaijan."  The authors of the appeal, more than 50 politicians, lawyers, civil society activists, call on the leaders of  ECHR to a serious investigation of the presence of subjective factors in the  adoption of decision on inadmissibility of  consideration of  50 complaints at once from Azerbaijan, and the legality of these actions.

    The European Court of Human Rights should approach  more responsible to the complaints of citizens  of Azerbaijan,  and to avoid actions that cast doubt on its status and authority,  reads the  appeal of the democratic society in Azerbaijan. In their  another appeal  to the  Council of Europe, the Committee of Ministers calls on the need to inform the public of Azerbaijan on the measures taken to ensure the execution of  the ECHR’s rulings. It is indicted that the decisions   provide not only  for the payment of compensation to claimants, but also  taking the legislative and practical measures to prevent recurrence of similar human rights violations in the future. -06B-