ECtHR finds rights violations of three convicts under "Nardaran Case"

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg has found the pre-trial arrest of Talekh Bagirzade, the leader of the Muslim Unity Movement, and his supporters, Zulfugar Mikayilov and Elman Agaev to be unlawful.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 25, 2017, Talekh Bagirzade and 17 of his supporters were sentenced to terms ranging from 10 to 20 years in jail on charges of organizing riots after the law enforcers' operation in November 2015, which resulted in the death of seven people. The defendants complained of torture. Azerbaijani human rights defenders treat the figurants in the "Nardaran Case" as political prisoners.

The ECtHR has found a violation of the applicants' rights under Articles 3 (prohibition of torture and inhuman treatment) and 5.3 (right to liberty and personal immunity) of the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). The ECtHR has assigned each applicant to be paid EUR 3900 in compensation for the suffered moral harm and other EUR 500 to cover the legal costs.

Djavad Djavadov, who represented the applicants at the ECtHR, said that Mikayilov and Agaev are now at large, as they were pardoned. Bagirzade is in prison, and the current decision does not provide for his release.

Arzu Abdulla, a defender of religious activists' rights, said that Mikayilov and Agaev had left Azerbaijan after their release and are now abroad. According to her story, five people remain in jail as figurants in the "Nardaran Case".