URGENT APPEAL - THE OBSERVATORY
New information
AZE 004 / 0215 / OBS 009.1
Disciplinary harassment
Azerbaijan
July 17, 2015
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), has received new information and requests your urgent intervention in the following situation in Azerbaijan.
New information :
The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the ongoing judicial harassment against Mr. Khalid Bagirov, prominent human rights lawyer who represented human rights defenders Ms. Leyla Yunus [1], Mr. Arif Yunusov [2] and Mr. Rasul Jafarov [3].
According to the information received, on July 10, 2015, the Nizami District Court upheld the request filed by the Presidium of the Azerbaijan Bar Association (ABA) to order the disbarment of Mr. Bagirov for alleged inappropriate conduct in court.
Mr. Bagirov was notified of the date of the hearing on the eve of July 10. As a consequence, he did not have sufficient time to prepare his defence and alert potential independent trial observers, which constitutes a violation of his right to a fair trial.
During the hearing, Mr. Bagirov filed a motion requesting the suspension of the trial pending the Baku Administrative-Economic Court No. 2 (BAEC2)’s review of his lawsuit against the ABA Presidium. Mr. Bagirov argued in his lawsuit before the BAEC2 that the Presidium had no legal personality, and therefore no civil-procedural action capacity (as provided under Article 259.0.2 of the Civil Procedure Code of the Azerbaijan Republic [4]) to file a lawsuit. The motion was rejected by the judge.
Mr. Bagirov’s motion to remove the judge was dismissed by the judge himself hereby violating the Сode of Arbitration Procedure which provides that the removal of a judge has to be reviewed by the Chairman of the Court.
Finally, the Court rejected Mr. Bagirov’s request to suspend the hearing until the following week in order to prepare his closing arguments. The judge only gave him 15 minutes for preparation. Shortly after Bagirov’s arguments, the court upheld the request of the ABA Presidium.
On July 13, 2015, the Baku Administrative-Economic Court No. 2 dismissed Mr. Bagirov’s petition against the ABA Presidium. The trial lasted seven minutes.
On July 13, 2015, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) informed Mr. Bagirov about its decision to study his application as a priority. Mr. Bagirov had filed a complaint to the ECtHR in January 2015 following his suspension from ABA requesting the court to recognize violation of his rights under Article 10 (freedom of expression) of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
The Observatory is deeply concerned about the number of violations of fair trial standards that occurred during both hearings, and deems that these actions only aim at hindering his legitimate professional activities as a human rights lawyer. The Observatory highlights that the accusations against Mr. Bagirov and the judicial harassment he has been facing bring serious concerns on the independence of the Azerbaijan Bar Association (ABA) as well as on its ability to protect the interests of the legal profession in the country.
The Observatory expresses its deepest concern about the disbarment of Mr. Bagirov as the number of human rights lawyers in the country is decreasing alarmingly thus denying human rights defenders and activists their right to legal defense.
Background information :
In the autumn of 2014, Mr. Bagirov was removed from defending his client Ms. Leyla Yunus. Mr. Bagirov was not immediately informed about the decision until he was denied visit to Ms. Yunus on November 5, 2015. The management of the remand facility explained the denial by referring to a letter from the Investigation Department on Grave Crimes of the General Prosecutor’s Office informing about K. Bagirov’s dismissal. Mr. Bagirov was not shown the letter nor informed about the reasons of the removal.
On December 10, 2014, the ABA Presidium suspended his lawyer’s license for alleged inappropriate conduct in court and filed a lawsuit requesting his disbarment, thus depriving him from the right to defend his other clients, including Messrs. Yunusov and Jafarov, as well as opposition leader Ilgar Mammadov [5]. Mr. Bagirov was also planning to defend human rights defender Intigam Aliyev [6].
During a preliminary hearing scheduled on February 2, 2015 before Nizami District Court, all the motions filed by Mr. Bagirov were rejected.
First, the Court refused to grant him the 5-10 minutes break he requested to familiarise himself with the protocols of the preparatory hearing.
Secondly, Mr. Bagirov argued that while the ABA is a legal entity according to Article 9 part 2 of the Law on Lawyers Activities, its Presidium has no legal personality, and therefore does not possess any civil-procedural action capacity (as provided under Article 259.0.2 of the Civil Procedure Code of the Azerbaijan Republic). However, the Court also rejected this motion.
Thirdly, Mr. Bagirov’s request to replace the wrong plaintiff, i.e. the Presidium, by the valid plaintiff, i.e. the ABA itself as a legal entity, was not satisfied either. Rather, the Court followed the Presidium representative’s comment that the lawsuit had been filed by the valid plaintiff.
Finally, Mr. Bagirov further demonstrated that the present case did not fall within the jurisdiction of civil courts as defined by the Azerbaijan Civil Procedure Code, and requested the Nizami District Court to refer the matter to the Baku Administrative Economic Court. However, his argument was also rejected by the Court. Several hearings were postponed.
This is not the first time that the ABA has attempted to revoke Mr. Bagirov’s license. In August 2011, his license was suspended for a year after he was accused of “spreading information discrediting the police”.
Action requested :
Please write to the authorities in Azerbaijan, urging them to :
I. Immediately review and cancel the decision to disbar Mr. Khalid Bagirov, immediately return his lawyer’s license, and put an end to any obstacle to the exercise of his professional activities ;
II. Put an end to any kind of harassment - including at the disciplinary level - against Mr. Khalid Bagirov, and more generally against all human rights defenders in Azerbaijan ;
III. Conform with the provisions of all international and European human rights instruments ratified by Azerbaijan, including article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that “all persons shall be equal before the courts and the tribunals” and that “everyone shall be entitled to a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent and impartial tribunal established by law”, as well as article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which states that “everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law” ;
IV. Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998, especially :
Article 1, which states that “everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to promote and to strive for the protection and realisation of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international levels” ;
Article 5, which underscores the right of every individual to form, join, and participate in non-governmental organisations ;
Article 11, which provides that “Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, to the lawful exercise of his or her occupation or profession. Everyone who, as a result of his or her profession, can affect the human dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of others should respect those rights and freedoms and comply with relevant national and international standards of occupational and professional conduct or ethics” ; and
Article 12.2, which provides that the State shall “take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of his or her rights” ;
V. Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with international human rights standards and international instruments ratified by Azerbaijan.
Addresses :
• Mr. Ilham Aliyev, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Office of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, 19 Istiqlaliyyat St., Baku AZ1066, Azerbaijan, Fax : (+994) 12 492 06 25, (+994) 412 92 28 68, E-mail : office@pa.gov.az, office@apparat.gov.az
• Mr. Zakir Garalov, Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Prosecutor’s Office, 7 Nigar Rafibeyli St., Baku, Azerbaijan, Fax : (+994) 12 492 06 82, (+994) 12 492 26 63, E-mail : z.qaralov@prosecutor.gov.az, info@prosecutor.gov.az
• Mr. Eldar Mahmudov, Minister of National Security, Ministry of National Security of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Parliament Avenue 14, Baku AZ1006, Azerbaijan, Fax : (+994) 12 493-76-22, E-mail : cpr@mns.gov.az
• Mr. Ramil Usubov, Minister of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Azerbaijani Republic, Fax : (+994) 12 492 45 90
• Mr. Elmar Mammadyarov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, E-mail : katiblik@mfa.gov.az
• Mr. Fikrat F. Mammadov, Minister of Justice in Azerbaijan, Inshaatchilar Prospekti, 1 Baku, Azerbaijan, e-mail : contact@justice.gov.az ; Fax (+994) 12 430 09 81
• H.E. Mr. Murad N. Najafbayli, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan to the United Nations in Geneva, Route des Fayards 237, CH-1290 Versoix, Switzerland, Fax : (+41) 22 901 18 44, E-mail : geneva@mission.mfa.gov.az
• Embassy of Azerbaijan in Brussels, Avenue Moliere 464, 1050 Brussels, Belgium, Fax : (+32) 2 345 91 85
Please also write to the diplomatic missions or embassies of Azerbaijan in your respective country as well as to the EU diplomatic missions or embassies in Azerbaijan.
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Paris-Geneva, July 17, 2015
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, an FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete support in their time of need.