Category: 2023

                                        Wednesday, 


Armenian Judges Defy State Watchdog

        • Naira Bulghadarian

Armenia - A meeting of the General Assembly of judges, Yerevan, .


Armenian judges on Wednesday criticized the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for 
sacking their colleagues and accused it of trying to effectively rig the 
election of a new member of the state body overseeing the country’s courts.

The several hundred judges gathered in Yerevan to fill a vacant seat in the SJC 
reserved for one of them. Only judges formally notified by the judicial watchdog 
can run for it. The SJC staff sent out such notifications only to provincial 
judges, excluding their colleagues working in Yerevan courts from the contest.

Several prominent judges condemned the decision as illegal. One of them, Davit 
Balayan, said he has challenged it in court.

“In my view, the judicial department predetermined the circle of judges eligible 
for nomination,” Balayan told reporters. “I believe this cannot be done.”

The SJC said that provincial judges are not among its current nine members and 
that it believes the remaining seat should be given to one of them. Most 
participants of Armenia’s General Assembly of Judges were unconvinced by that 
explanation, postponing the election of the SJC member.

The judicial watchdog has wide-ranging powers, including the right to nominate, 
sanction and even fire judges. It is headed by Karen Andreasian, a former 
justice minister widely regarded as a political ally of Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian. Andreasian and four other SJC members were installed by the Armenian 
parliament controlled by Pashinian’s party. The four others were elected by the 
General Assembly.

Armenia - Karen Andreasian, head of the Supreme Judicial Council, chairs an SJC 
hearing in Yerevan, June 29, 2023.

Over the past year, the SJC has significantly increased the number of 
disciplinary proceedings against judges accused by the Ministry of Justice of 
various violations. Armenian opposition leaders and some legal experts claim 
that this is part of government attempts to further curb judicial independence 
in Armenia under the guise of Western-backed “judicial reforms.” Pashinian’s 
government denies these claims.

The SJC controversially dismissed four judges as recently as on July 3. One of 
them, Davit Harutiunian, was ousted after saying that the SJC arbitrarily fires 
his colleagues at the behest of a single person. The Ministry of Justice accused 
him of breaching the Judicial Code and discrediting the Armenian judiciary.

“I believe that Mr. Harutiunian was unfairly ousted from the judicial system,” 
Balayan said in this regard.

“I am very concerned about so many disciplinary proceedings … I am concerned 
that four judges can be terminated in one day,” said another district court 
judge, Arman Hovannisian.

Vazgen Rshtuni, a judge of Armenia’s Court of Appeals, echoed those concerns and 
said he and his colleagues should be able to openly discuss them.

“The Supreme Judicial Council is not a holy site and the people working there 
are not saints either,” Rshtuni told journalists.

But another senior judge, Gevorg Gyozalian, said his colleagues should stay away 
from the press. “The only platform for addressing our problems is the General 
Assembly,” said Gyozalian, who worked as Pashinian’s private lawyer before being 
appointed to the Court of Cassation last year.




No Progress Made In Armenian-Azeri Border Delimitation Talks


ARMENIA -- Azerbaijani (L) and Armenian border posts by the Sotk gold mine, June 
18, 2021.


The Armenian government essentially confirmed on Wednesday that Armenian and 
Azerbaijani officials did not make major progress last week during another round 
of negotiations on delimiting the border between their countries.

The joint session of Armenian and Azerbaijani government commissions on border 
demarcation and delimitation took place at a relatively peaceful section of the 
heavily militarized frontier on July 12. It was co-chaired by Deputy Prime 
Minister Mher Grigorian and his Azerbaijani counterpart Shahin Mustfayev.

No concrete agreements were announced following the meeting, with the Armenian 
Foreign Ministry saying only that the two sides “addressed a number of 
organizational and procedural issues.”

News.am quoted Grigorian’s office as saying that they did not agree on which 
maps should be used for the delimitation purposes. “No decision was made 
regarding any map,” it said.

Speaking after his June 1 meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held 
in Moldova, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian suggested that Baku is open to 
accepting an Armenian proposal to use 1975 Soviet maps. The Azerbaijani Foreign 
Ministry denied that, however. It said that Azerbaijan has demarcated its 
borders with other neighboring states “on the basis of analyses and examination 
of legally binding documents, rather than any specially chosen map.”

The issue was also on the agenda of another Aliyev-Pashinian meeting hosted by 
the European Union’s top official, Charles Michel, in Brussels on July 15. 
Michel said the two leaders “agreed to intensify and accelerate the work of the 
commissions.”

The practical modalities of the border delimitation are one of the stumbling 
blocks in ongoing talks on an Armenian-Azerbaijani peace treaty.




EU Backs Azeri Supply Line For Karabakh

        • Astghik Bedevian
        • Susan Badalian

Armenia - EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in 
Georgia Toivo Klaar visits Yerevan, June 6, 2023.


The European Union has again welcomed Azerbaijan’s offer to send food and other 
humanitarian supplies to Nagorno-Karabakh via an alternative route bypassing the 
Lachin corridor blocked by Baku for the last seven months.

"The Lachine corridor should be opened,” Toivo Klaar, the EU’s special envoy to 
the South Caucasus, told Alphanews.am late on Tuesday. “At the same time, I 
think that every offer should also be used, not as an alternative to Lachine but 
as a complement to it.”

Azerbaijani officials have made the offer while dismissing international calls 
to lift the blockade and denying a humanitarian crisis in Karabakh despite 
severe shortages of food, medicine, fuel and other essential items there. They 
say that the region can be supplied with basic necessities from Azerbaijan 
proper and the town of Aghdam in particular.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev apparently insisted on this idea during his 
trilateral meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and EU head 
Charles Michel held in Brussels on July 15. Michel said after the talks that as 
well as urging Aliyev to reopen the Lachin corridor he “noted Azerbaijan’s 
willingness to equally provide humanitarian supplies via Aghdam.”

“I see both options as important,” he said, prompting strong criticism from 
Karabakh’s leadership that regards the Aghdam option as a ploy designed to 
facilitate the restoration of Azerbaijani control over Karabakh.

“Our position is that there is an international obligation [by Azerbaijan] 
regarding the unhindered functioning of the Lachin corridor and it must be 
fulfilled unconditionally,” Artur Harutiunian, a senior Karabakh lawmaker, told 
RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Wednesday.

Harutiunian pointed to a Russian-brokered 2020 agreement that committed Baku to 
ensuring unfettered commercial traffic through the sole road connecting Karabakh 
to Armenia.

“For some reason, European officials keep talking about humanitarian aid,” he 
complained. “They seem to think that the people of Artsakh should only live off 
humanitarian supplies and are looking for some alternative arrangements for 
that.”

Nagorno-Karabakh - Residents of Stepanakert line up outside a local food store, 
January 20, 2023.

Several non-governmental organizations based in Stepanakert also denounced 
Michel’s remarks. “Assistance to people facing a humanitarian catastrophe cannot 
come at the expense of their dignity from a country that can offer them nothing 
but hatred, suffering and pain,” they said in a joint statement.

Many ordinary Karabakh Armenians appear to back this stance despite the fact 
that one month after the tightening of the Azerbaijani blockade there is 
virtually nothing they can now buy in local food stores apart from limited 
quantities of bread.

“No way, only the lifeline road to Armenia,” a resident of the village of 
Khramort said when asked about the possibility of accepting food supplies from 
Azerbaijan.

Khramort has about 220 residents. It now receives only 35 loaves of bread each 
day.

“They [the Azerbaijanis] only want a Karabakh without Armenians,” said Janik 
Petrosian, a schoolteacher who fled another village that was seized by 
Azerbaijani forces during the 2020 war.

On Tuesday, a group of local activists placed concrete barriers on a Karabakh 
road leading to Aghdam. They also put a banner reading “The road to death.”

It remains unclear how Pashinian reacted to the Azerbaijani proposal during his 
weekend talks with Aliyev. The Armenian government’s press office has not 
commented on that so far.

The Armenian premier sparked uproar in Stepanakert and Yerevan in May when he 
effectively recognized Azerbaijani sovereignty over Karabakh. He regularly calls 
for an internationally mediated dialogue between Baku and Stepanakert on “the 
rights and security” of Karabakh’s population. His critics counter that no 
security guarantees can convince the Karabakh Armenians to live under 
Azerbaijani rule.




Armenian Army Chief Visits U.S.


U.S. - Gen. Charles Brown, chief of U.S. Air Force Staff, meets Lt.-Gen. Eduard 
Asrian, the Armenian army chief, Washington, .


Armenia’s top army general has met with high-ranking U.S. military officials 
during a visit to Washington.

The officials included Admiral Christopher Grady, the vice chairman of the Joint 
Chiefs of Staff, and General Charles Brown, the chief of the U.S. Air Force 
Staff.

The Defense Ministry in Yerevan said on Wednesday that Lieutenant-General Eduard 
Asrian, the chief of the Armenian army’s General Staff, discussed with them 
U.S.-Armenian “defense partnership” and “the conduct of joint activities” 
stemming from it.

The two sides explored “opportunities for broader cooperation in the Air Force 
sector,” a ministry statement said, adding that “regional security” was also on 
the agenda. It gave no other details. The Pentagon issued not statements on 
Asrian’s trip.

The secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, Armen Grigorian, visited Washington 
earlier this month for talks with U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan 
and Laura Cooper, the U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for Russia, 
Ukraine and Eurasia.

In an interview with the Armenian Service of the Voice of America published last 
week, Grigorian said the United States and Armenia are now discussing ways of 
“opening new doors” in bilateral military cooperation.

“We have made great progress. The results will be visible in the long term,” he 
said without elaborating.

Washington has given no indications that it could provide Armenia with weapons 
or other military equipment.

Armenia - U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Armenian Defense Minister Suren 
Papikian (cemter) meet in Yerevan, September 18, 2022.

In September 2022, then U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and three other 
pro-Armenian U.S. lawmakers fuelled speculation about such military aid when 
they met with Armenian Defense Minister Suren Papikian during a visit to 
Yerevan. Pelosi said the meeting was meant to “convey America’s support for 
Armenia's security” in the face of Azerbaijan’s “illegal and deadly attacks on 
the Armenian territory”

Grigorian insisted that Armenia’s close military ties with Russia are not 
hampering the expansion of its defense cooperation with the U.S.

Armenia’s relations with Russia and the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty 
Organization (CSTO) have deteriorated significantly over the past year due to 
what Yerevan sees as a lack of support from its ex-Soviet allies in the conflict 
with Azerbaijan. In January, the Armenian government cancelled a CSTO military 
exercise which it was due to host this year.

In April, Moscow demanded explanations from Yerevan after the U.S. Department of 
Defense initially listed Armenia among 26 nations that will participate in an 
upcoming U.S.-led military exercise in Europe. The demand came after the 
Pentagon promptly removed the South Caucasus country from the list, citing a 
technical error. The Russian Foreign Ministry charged that the Defender 23 
drills are part of U.S. efforts to drive a wedge between Russia and other 
ex-Soviet states.


Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2023 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

 

FORUM 18 NEWS SERVICE, Oslo, Norway
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjh0eelh9$
 

The right to believe, to worship and witness
The right to change one's belief or religion
The right to join together and express one's belief

=================================================

Tuesday 
AZERBAIJAN: Will State Committee return religious books seized in 2007?

Shukran Mammadov is still waiting for the State Committee for Work with
Religious Organisations to return books by Muslim theologian Said Nursi
seized in a police raid in 2007. The European Court of Human Rights ruled
in his favour in 2020, and on 1 March 2023 Baku Appeal Court ordered the
books to be returned. "The government should have ensured that Shukran's
property was returned, but few European Court of Human Rights decisions are
fully carried out," Mammadov's lawyer Asabali Mustafayev told Forum 18.

AZERBAIJAN: Will State Committee return religious books seized in 2007?
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2847__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjlPy5FVq$
 
By Felix Corley, Forum 18

Following a 2020 decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), a
Baku court has ruled that the State Committee for Work with Religious
Organisations must return religious books seized from Shukran Mammadov.
Police seized the books – by the late Turkish Muslim theologian –
during a raid in 2007, and Mammadov was also fined for hosting a religious
meeting. The books were then handed to the State Committee.

The ECtHR stated in its December 2020 decision that "the interference with
the applicant's possessions could not be considered lawful" (see below).

Despite the ECtHR decision that seizing his books had violated his rights,
Mammadov had to go to Azerbaijan's Supreme Court to overturn an earlier
refusal to return the books. He then had to go to Baku Appeal Court, which
on 1 March 2023 ordered the State Committee to return them. As of 18 July,
Mammadov has still not received back his books (see below).

The State Committee failed to respond to Forum 18's question as to when it
intends to return Mammadov's books (see below).

"The government should have ensured that Shukran's property was returned,
but few European Court of Human Rights decisions are fully carried out,"
Mammadov's lawyer Asabali Mustafayev told Forum 18. "So on our advice
Shukran appealed to the court here. Now he has the decision and it has been
sent to be implemented" (see below).

In a Jehovah's Witness religious literature censorship case, the regime
claimed to the Council of Europe in July 2022 that "the practice of
imposing restrictions on religious literature has become outdated for a
while in Azerbaijan". However, the state censorship of all religious
literature produced in, distributed in and imported into Azerbaijan remains
unchanged (see below).

Elshad Miri, a Muslim theologian who is challenging a State Committee ban
on one of his books at the ECtHR, says the religious literature censorship
system is still in force. "Nothing has changed in the system," he told
Forum 18. "This needs to change – it is not just" (see below).

Eldar Zeynalov of the Human Rights Centre of Azerbaijan agrees. "According
to ordinary human logic, if there are some state structures that are
responsible for recognising a religious text as 'extremist' and for issuing
'relevant permission' for the production and distribution of religious
literature, then this means the presence of 'religious censorship', even if
the office of this organisation does not have a sign with that name," he
told Forum 18 (see below).

Forum 18 asked Chingiz Asgarov, the government agent to the ECtHR who made
this claim to the Council of Europe, why he is claiming this given that the
censorship system remains unchanged. Forum 18 reminded him of Article 22 of
the Religion Law, which sets out this state censorship. Forum 18 received
no immediate response (see below).

Complete religious literature censorship

Under Article 22 of the Religion Law, all religious literature produced in,
published in (including on the internet) or imported into Azerbaijan is
subject to prior compulsory censorship
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2429__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjtTAzSWT$
 ). If the State
Committee for Work with Religious Organisations "Religious Expert Analysis
[Censorship] Department" gives permission to publish or import a work, it
also specifies how many copies can be produced or imported.

The Department – which is headed by Nahid Mammadov – employs 8
officials, according to the State Committee website. Officials at the
Department told Forum 18 on 17 July that Mammadov was not in the office.
They said they were unable to explain why religious books and materials are
subject to censorship, or what the 8 officials do.

Publications which have gained State Committee approval indicate this. For
example, a Catholic prayer book in Azeri published in 2023 includes a note:
"This book was published with the permission of the State Committee for
Work with Religious Organisations of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Letter
DK-1929/F)." (DK is the Azeri abbreviation of State Committee.)

All religious materials sold must have a sticker (each costing 0.02 Manats)
from the State Committee stating that they have its approval for
distribution.

As of 18 July, the State Committee website lists 44 shops which it allows
to sell religious literature and materials.

Criminal Code Article 167-2 punishes "Production, sale and distribution of
religious literature (paper and electronic formats), audio and video
materials, religious items and other informational materials of religious
nature with the aim of import, sale and distribution without appropriate
authorisation".

The State Committee regularly announces – without details – how many
publications it has approved and not approved. It said it rejected the
import of 52 books in 2020, the publication of 16 in 2021 and the
publication of 8 and the import of 107 in 2022, claiming that they promoted
"religious intolerance". However, it publishes no list of publications it
has not approved.

State officials have repeatedly denied that this is censorship.

Elshad Miri, a Baku-based Muslim theologian who is challenging a State
Committee ban on one of his books at the European Court of Human Rights
(ECtHR) in Strasbourg (see below), says the religious literature censorship
system is still in force. "Nothing has changed in the system," he told
Forum 18 on 18 July. "This needs to change – it is not just."

Miri said that since the State Committee ban, it has given permission for
him to publish two more books. "I wrote to the State Committee and asked to
produce 1,000 copies," he said. "They then write back giving the number
that they allow to be published. They warn that if you want to publish
further copies, you need to come back to them again for permission."

Miri said that on going to a printer with the religious book, "the first
thing they ask for is the permission letter from the State Committee". The
book has to include a statement that the book has permission from the State
Committee with the reference number of the approval.

European Court of Human Rights decision, but no return of religious books

Following a 2020 decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in
Strasbourg, a Baku court has ruled that the State Committee must return
religious books seized from Shukran Mammadov in 2007.

Mammadov had legally bought the more than 100 books – from Muslim
theologian Said Nursi's "Risale-i Nur" [Messages of Light] collection –
in a bookshop in Baku. Police seized the books in a raid on a religious
meeting in his home in Ujar in July 2007 (for which he was also fined) and
handed them to the State Committee for censorship. The State Committee has
given varying opinions of Nursi's works
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1964__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjhanO_Ea$
 ) over the years, at
times banning them and others declaring that individuals can import limited
quantities.

In December 2020, the ECtHR found that the regime had violated Mammadov's
rights 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2647__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjPB5Ae_$
 ) (Application
No. 7308/12 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-206272__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjhVkDXZR$
 )) and ordered that
the government pay him compensation. The government has paid the
compensation, but Mammadov was unable to get back the religious books
seized from him.

Shukran Mammadov had earlier unsuccessfully brought legal challenges to
recover his books 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1522__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjArHOUk$
 ),
but ultimately lost his case at the Supreme Court in August 2011. He
revived his attempt to get them back after the ECtHR judgment in December
2020 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2647__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjPB5Ae_$
 ).

On 26 November 2021, Asabali Mustafayev wrote on Mammadov's behalf
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://hudoc.exec.coe.int/ENG?i=DH-DD(2022)12E__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjgb_-Txo$
 ) to the Committee of
Ministers of the Council of Europe (which oversees the implementation of
ECtHR decisions). He noted that although the regime had paid the
compensation awarded to Mammadov because of the violation of his rights,
"it has not returned the applicant's possession (religious books)". He
pointed out that the ECtHR had stated in its decision that "the
interference with the applicant's possessions could not be considered
lawful".

Mustafayev noted that Mammadov had repeatedly written to the government's
representative Chingiz Asgarov and the Justice Ministry requesting the
books' return, but "to no avail". The failure to return them meant that the
regime "continues to violate his rights". 

"Shukran clearly did not have these books for distribution, as there was
only one copy of each title," Mustafayev told Forum 18 from Baku on 11 July
2023. "He bought them legally when they were openly on sale in Baku. The
State Committee later banned their mass distribution without any basis. So
their confiscation was illegal."

Following the December 2020 ECtHR decision, and given the failure to hand
back his books, Mammadov brought a suit against the State Committee to the
Plenum of the Supreme Court. He sought to overturn the Supreme Court's
rejection of his suit handed down in 2011.

On 30 September 2022, the Plenum of the Supreme Court ruled that earlier
court decisions rejecting the return of the books had been incorrect and
returned Mammadov's case to Baku Appeal Court.

On 1 March 2023, a panel of three judges at Baku Appeal Court, chaired by
Judge Farrukh Qasimov, approved the return of his books. The court "agrees
with the evidence of the plaintiff's appeal and notes that the confiscation
of books belonging to the plaintiff was illegal, and the plaintiff was
entitled to claim back his property illegally held by the defendant [State
Committee]", the decision, seen by Forum 18, declares. The court therefore
annulled the 2010 court decision against Mammadov.

The State Committee did not appeal against the court decision that the
books must be returned, Mammadov's lawyer Mustafayev told Forum 18 on 11
July. "Implementation of this decision is now taking place." It remains
unclear when bailiffs will enforce the decision and return Mammadov's books
to him. Mammadov had not received them back as of 18 July.

Forum 18 asked the press secretary at the State Committee, Yagut Aliyeva,
in writing on 12 July when it intends to return Mammadov's books. It
received no reply by the end of the working day in Baku of 18 July.

"The government should have ensured that Shukran's property was returned,
but few European Court of Human Rights decisions are fully carried out,"
Mustafayev told Forum 18. "So on our advice Shukran appealed to the court
here. Now he has the decision and it has been sent to be implemented."

"Unilateral declarations", "friendly settlements", and failure to change
law and practice

Victims of human rights violations and human rights defenders have
complained that, although the regime pays the compensation ordered by the
European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), it does not change law and
practices to prevent repeat violations. Thus many cases – such as over
punishments for conscientious objectors or religious literature censorship
– cover human rights violations that the Court has already ruled on in
similar cases.

Jehovah's Witness Seymur Mammadov is considering lodging a case to the
ECtHR 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2846__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjhMuArvZ$
 ) over his
conviction and punishment for refusing compulsory military service on
grounds of conscience. The ECtHR has already ruled in favour of seven
conscientious objectors but the regime has failed to introduce an
alternative service for those who cannot perform military service on
grounds of conscience.

"The Court pointed out that such a situation in principle calls for
legislative action by the respondent State in order to fulfil its
obligations to enable the applicants and other persons in the same
situation to benefit from the right to conscientious objection", a
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2846Council__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjtAieYVx$
  of Europe report
noted of the cases of five of the conscientious objectors.

In recent years the regime has tried to close cases of freedom of religion
or belief violations at the ECtHR
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2795__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjqlAeNg3$
 ) by admitting
violations and offering compensation in a "unilateral declaration" or by
offering compensation in a "friendly settlement".

In October 2022, the ECtHR closed two cases over import bans of Jehovah's
Witness literature 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2647__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjPB5Ae_$
 )
after the regime offered a "unilateral declaration" which included its
"acknowledgement of the fact that there was a violation of the applicants'
rights guaranteed under the Convention". The regime offered compensation to
Baku's Jehovah's Witness community, but not to the individual applicants
who had also been part of the cases to the ECtHR.

"It is easier a couple of times a year to buy off those few complainants
who manage to get to the European Court than to change the well-established
system that suits the authorities," Eldar Zeynalov of the Human Rights
Centre of Azerbaijan told Forum 18 from Baku in March 2021
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2647__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjPB5Ae_$
 ). "And if it is
possible to do this without bringing the essence of the problem to public
consideration at all, this is ideal for the government. And this is exactly
what happens when concluding friendly settlements or when the ECtHR accepts
a unilateral declaration from the government."

Religious literature censorship cases under Council of Europe "enhanced
supervision"

Shukran Mammadov's ECtHR decision is among four cases – another of which
relates to censored Jehovah's Witness literature – which are under
enhanced supervision by the Council of Europe. The regime submitted an
Action Report on 20 July 2022
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://hudoc.exec.coe.int/eng?i=DH-DD(2022)785E__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjvXV96VN$
 ) related to three
Jehovah's Witness cases. Chingiz Asgarov, the government agent to the
ECtHR, did not respond to the Committee of Ministers on Shukran Mammadov's
case.

The regime's Action Report in the three Jehovah's Witness cases claims that
it has implemented the ECtHR decisions by paying the compensation awarded
by the Court to victims in two of the four cases (both from Jehovah's
Witnesses), as well as in another Jehovah's Witness case. Asgarov claims
that "no outstanding issues remain unresolved" and asks the Committee of
Ministers to close the case.

"Additional information is awaited," the Council of Europe website
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://hudoc.exec.coe.int/eng?i=004-55457__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjQL3QOI$
 ) as of  notes in
response to the regime's Action Report.

The ECtHR ruled in February 2020 that Azerbaijan had violated the rights of
Jehovah's Witnesses by banning three of their publications from import and
distribution back in 2008 (Religious Community of Jehovah's Witnesses v.
Azerbaijan, Application No. 52884/09
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-201087__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjnUeP6RH$
 )).

Following the ECtHR's February 2020 judgment, the regime's July 2022 Action
Report claimed that "since 2016 no restrictions have been imposed on the
Religious Community of Jehovah's Witnesses on importing religious
literature. In general, the practice of imposing restrictions on religious
literature has become outdated for a while in Azerbaijan".

While the State Committee has not refused Jehovah's Witnesses permission to
import specific publications since November 2015, the state censorship of
all religious literature produced in, distributed in and imported into
Azerbaijan remains unchanged.

Eldar Zeynalov of the Human Rights Centre of Azerbaijan told Forum 18 on 18
July that it is "difficult to accept" the claim that "the practice of
imposing restrictions on religious literature has become outdated". He
points to Criminal Code Article 167-2 punishing unapproved production,
distribution and import of religious materials.

Criminal Code Article 167-2 "is not about just extremist literature, but
about any publications of religious content, not even intended for sale",
Zeynalov notes. "How many books or magazines are enough to initiate a
criminal case under this article has not been specified, which gives reason
to believe that even one copy is enough."

Zeynalov adds: "According to ordinary human logic, if there are some state
structures that are responsible for recognising a religious text as
'extremist' and for issuing 'relevant permission' for the production and
distribution of religious literature, then this means the presence of
'religious censorship', even if the office of this organisation does not
have a sign with that name."

Forum 18 asked Chingiz Asgarov, the government agent to the ECtHR who made
this claim to the Council of Europe, in writing in the middle of the
working day in Baku of 17 July why he is claiming this given that the
censorship system remains unchanged. Forum 18 reminded him of Article 22 of
the Religion Law, which sets out this state censorship. Forum 18 received
no response by the end of the working day in Baku of 18 July.

Another religious literature censorship case is pending at the ECtHR. In
February 2018, the State Committee for Work with Religious Organisations on
theological grounds banned the publication and distribution
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2351__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjjiouiSQ$
 ) of the book "Things
Not Existing in Islam" by Muslim theologian Elshad Miri (also known as
Miriyev). Repeated legal appeals against the ban failed
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2485__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjvfr0hrn$
 ).

After failing on 20 December 2019 in the Supreme Court to overturn the ban
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2490__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjldjFjcW$
 ), Miri lodged a case
in the ECtHR, Miriyev v. Azerbaijan (Application No. 1717/20). The ECtHR
has not yet asked the regime questions about the case. Miri told Forum 18
on  that he has had no recent news from the Court.

Government "friendly agreement" in one UN appeal, another appeal withdrawn

On 24 March 2022, the United Nations Human Rights Committee discontinued
consideration of an appeal lodged by two Jehovah's Witnesses in June 2016
about violations of freedom of religion, it announced on 28 February 2023.
The Committee said the decision had been taken because the two "had reached
a friendly agreement with the State party".

On 27 July 2022, the Committee discontinued consideration of an appeal
lodged by an individual in November 2015 about violations of freedom of
religion, it announced on 9 March 2023. The Committee said the decision had
been taken at the request of the applicant.

The appeal appears to be related to the Baptist community in the northern
town of Aliabad, which police repeatedly raided and two of whose pastors
were jailed. The Baptist church was able to meet for worship with limited
State Committee approval from January 2020
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2557__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjgJBA1iI$
 ), which might have led
the applicant to withdraw the appeal to the UN Human Rights Committee.
(END)

Full reports on freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Azerbaijan
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?query=&religion=all&country=23__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjqBs1rmv$
 )

For more background, see Forum 18's Azerbaijan religious freedom survey
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=2429__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjtTAzSWT$
 )

Forum 18's compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in
Europe (OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1351__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjqcsZdLj$
 )

Follow us on Twitter @Forum_18 
(https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://twitter.com/forum_18__;!!LIr3w8kk_Xxm!qds6hCYJfEXxXUXOxiaXgG9-i9f2LLnpe3F2jQW_WmJOcO4nqQfspCBoMPgQBPkc10-nYTaApReWZXvx07mEjiIo24Pp$
 )

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 )

All Forum 18 text may be referred to, quoted from, or republished in full,
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