On 11 March, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) announced their
decisions
on seven complaints from Azerbaijan. According to the decisions, the Azerbaijani government must pay compensation to the claimants totalling 56,300 Euros.
The applicants Vugar Aliyev and Agamamed Mammadov accepted the government's offer to pay them compensation in the amount of 6,000 and 3,800 Euros, respectively. Aliyev, being a political activist, was convicted on drug trafficking charges. In his complaint, he claimed his rights to a fair trial and privacy were violated. Mammadov's complaint is related to the violation of property rights.
In the cases of Revan Sabzaliyev, Natig Mirzoyev and Durnisa Akhmedova, the government also reached an amicable agreement with the applicants. The authorities agreed to pay them compensation in the amounts of 4,500 euros, 1,500 euros and 3,000 euros, respectively. Sabzaliev was arrested for ten months for preaching the teachings of Said Nursi. He appealed against the violation of freedom of religion. Mirzoyev complained about poor quality medical care in prison.
The government reached an amicable agreement in the case of Rzamov and others (nine people) against Azerbaijan. The authorities pledged to pay each applicant 3,750 Euros. They complained about unjustified detention during a religious meeting.
Finally, the proceedings of the case Imanzade Mammadov v. Azerbaijan were terminated due to the death of the applicant. As a member of the community of Jehovah's Witnesses, he had claimed his rights to freedom of religion, personal security and property rights had been violated.
Commonly Azerbaijan will agree to compensations after the Court rules that rights were violated years earlier. However, not all those awarded compensation actually receive it, and rather than commit to changes in the judicial and penal system in the country, Azerbaijan seems content continuing to violate the same rights over and over again in similar cases, forcing many to start the years-long process of taking their case to the ECHR.
One of the prerequisites of taking a case to the Court is an exhaustion of all domestic options.
