What is happening in the area of ​​the demolition of the former Sovetskaya Street

On June 7 the  Committee to Protect Civil Society held a roundtable on the topic: "The History of Baku erased. What should make the civil society? "and decided to establish an ad hoc working group to study the mass violations of the law during the demolition of houses in the neighborhood of  "Sovetskaya Street", and the protection of architectural monuments and the rights of inviolability of private property.

At the initiative of Gulchohra Aliyeva, residents of Sovetskaya Street, the work will be carried out in five directions - protection of historical and architectural monuments, protection of the rights of private property owners, the study and prevention of environmental and technological risks, the protection of society, media coverage and promotion of the protection of historical heritage and the rights of citizens.

Demolition of houses over a wide area referred to as "Sovetskaya" began in the spring of 2013 without a legal basis, and was accompanied by a flagrant violation of constitutional rights of citizens, in violation of the principle of the inviolability of private property, destruction of hundreds of historical and architectural monuments.

All illegal works are directed by Javanshir Yusifov, the Head of Civil Service Financial Supervision and the Ministry of Finance, the chief executive of Yasamal district Ibrahim Mehdiyev, said a resident of "Sovetskaya" Faig Aliyev, who is now suing the government.

 Residents said that the recently were demolished intensively houses of those who refuse to leave their homes. "They turned off the gas, water, electricity and people try to survive," said Aliyev Gulchohra.

Officially, it was reported earlier that in the area of ​​the Sovetskaya there are about 10,000 addresses, most of which were built at the beginning of the last century. Approximately 138 buildings have been included in the list of historical and architectural, protected by law.

"The supreme law of the land, namely the Article 29, the Right for Property, including the right to private property, is protected by law. No one without a court decision can be deprived of  their property. Full confiscation of property is not allowed. Alienation of property for state needs may be permitted only on condition of fair prior compensation of its value," said lawyer Alasgar Mammadli.

Demolition of houses is under the pretext of alienation for state needs. However, the law means by "needs"  the construction of highways, oil and gas pipelines, high-voltage transmission lines, sewage systems and hydraulic structures of national importance, the strengthening of the state border, construction of defense. "Nothing like this is on the Sovetskaya Street, and the application of this provision is not acceptable," said the poet Kamala Abiyeva, noting that Master Plan of Baku has not been approved as Law, on which refer the destroyers of private property.

The government claims that most of the residents  of Sovetskaya Street left their homes having received compensation on the basis of mutual agreement with the authorities. However, thousands of signatures on a petition to protect the  Sovetskaya Street  have been collected.

Sovetskaya Street  is the informal name of the historic residential district in Baku. In Sovetskaya Street  there are apartment buildings, older than a hundred years, mosques, baths, museums, houses where famous people lived.  The quarter is  also known as the "Bayir Sheher", which means "Outer City."-- 0-