When will the Supreme Court rehabilitate Intigam Aliyev, Anar Mammadli and Khadija Ismayil?

Baku/19.11.21/Turan: The plenum of the Supreme Court today decided on the full rehabilitation of Zaur Gurbanli, Rashadat Akhundov, Rashad Hasanov and Uezir Mammadli, who at the time of their arrest in 2013 were members of the NIDA protest movement. In addition, for illegal arrest and imprisonment, they will be paid monetary compensation in the amount of 188,000 manat,  reported the Supreme Court.

Thus, the decision of the ECtHR has been fully implemented in respect of these persons. These persons were arrested in the spring of 2013 in connection with the organization of protests in Baku against non-combat losses in the army.

They were charged with organizing mass riots, illegal circulation of ammunition, causing damage to other people's property, etc. In May 2014, the court sentenced Gurbanli and Akhundov to 8 years, Hasanov to 7.6 years and Mammadli to 7 years in prison.

However, they were soon pardoned by the President of Azerbaijan and subsequently did not show political activity. The ECHR subsequently recognized the illegality of their arrest and found a violation of their rights under  the Article 18  of the European Convention (limits of use of restrictions on rights), thus seeing political motives in their persecution.

It should be noted that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe insisted on the full rehabilitation of all applicants from Azerbaijan, in respect of whom the ECHR recognized violation of the rights under  the Article 18.

From this category of persons, the Plenum of the Supreme Court earlier acquitted the head of the REAL party Ilgar Mammadov and the head of the Baku Human Rights Club Rasul Jafarov.

However, despite the persistent recommendations of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, well-known human rights defenders Intigam Aliyev, Anar Mammadli, investigative journalist Khadija Ismail, youth activists Bayram Mammadov (now deceased) and Giyas Ibrahimov have not yet been rehabilitated. All of them were recognized as political prisoners and “prisoners of conscience”.

Why the cases of these persons were not considered by the Plenum of the Supreme Court is not clear. — 06D-