Azerbaijan: Letter to the Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) RE: Bribe accusations
To Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE)
Council of Europe
Avenue de l’Europe
F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex
FRANCE
16 January 2017
We are writing with a view to the criminal case against the former
Vice President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
(PACE), Mr. Luca Volonte, who is being investigated by the Milan public
prosecutor’s office for allegedly accepting €2.39m in bribes from two
members of PACE, Mr. Elkhan Suleymanov and Mr. Muslim Mammadov, in
exchange for his efforts to thwart the 2013 critical resolution on
political prisoners in Azerbaijan.
We urge you to immediately expel the two members of the Azerbaijani
delegation accused of bribing other members (Elkhan Suleymanov and
Muslim Mammadov), pending a full investigation. Furthermore, we urge you
to suspend the voting rights of the entire Azerbaijani delegation,
which we believe were completely aware of the bribery but failed to take
a single step to stop it.
The European Stability Initiative’s report: The European Swamp (Caviar Diplomacy Part 2) – Prosecutors, Corruption and the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly [1] as well as the investigation conducted by the Italian broadcaster RAI reveal shameful details of the corruption scam.
To this end, the 2013 vote on Mr. Christoph Strässer’s resolution may
not be considered legitimate. As a matter of urgency, PACE should
immediately re-establish the mandate of a special rapporteur on
political prisoners in Azerbaijan – a credible member of PACE with a
solid record of scrutinising and reporting on human rights abuses – to
write an objective report, in cooperation with the Council of Europe
INGO conference experts and internationally-recognised rights watchdogs.
We recall that, in 2014, PACE, through its Committee on Legal Affairs
and Human Rights (AS Jur) decided to proceed with a separate report
titled “Azerbaijan’s Chairmanship of the Council of Europe: What
follow-up on respect for human rights”. Since then, there has been no
meaningful follow-up after the 2014 decision. In the most recent
example, neither the As Jur rapporteur nor his colleagues at the
Monitoring Committee, and not even the PACE leadership, reacted to the
harsh ten-year sentences handed down by a court in Azerbaijan to young
political activists Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov, along with
allegations of ill-treatment during their detention. To the contrary,
the European Union immediately issued a statement, in which they called
the sentences “particularly worrying [2]”.
On 18 November 2016, the highest court in Azerbaijan considered the
appeal by the Azerbaijani political prisoner and opposition leader Mr.
Ilgar Mammadov against his seven-year long prison sentence and ruled to
uphold it. The continued illegal imprisonment of Mr. Mammadov
constitutes a blatant breach of Azerbaijan’s explicit legal obligations,
and is an affront to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe, which has repeatedly demanded that Azerbaijan comply with the
2014 decision by the European Court of Human Rights and immediately and
unconditionally release Ilgar Mammadov. Contrary to the Committee of
Ministers, which is now considering legal action against Azerbaijan,
PACE has failed to take a decisive action against such a flagrant and
persistent violation of the Convention and of the principles on which it
is founded, including respect for the binding judgments of the European
Court of Human Rights.
To this end, we call on PACE to eliminate any trace of corruption and
misconduct within the Pan-European human rights organisation, and to
demonstrate a strong and consolidated stance on human rights violations
in Azerbaijan. Specifically, we urge you do the following:
- – Immediately expel the two members of the Azerbaijani delegation
accused of bribing other members (Elkhan Suleymanov and Muslim
Mammadov), pending a full investigation.
- – Suspend the voting rights of the entire Azerbaijani delegation,
pending a full investigation into the corruption and until Ilgar
Mammadov and other political prisoners have been released.
- – Re-establish the mandate of a special rapporteur on political
prisoners in Azerbaijan – a credible member of PACE with a solid record
of scrutinising and reporting on human rights abuses – to write an
objective report in cooperation with the Council of Europe INGO
conference experts and internationally-recognised rights watchdogs.
- – Call for an urgent debate on the corruption scam within the
Council of Europe; appoint a special ethical commission to investigate
alleged involvement of the other members of PACE in the bribery case.
Thank you for considering this important matter.
Undersigned:
- Intigam Aliyev, Chairman, Legal Education Society
- Rasul Jafarov, human rights defender
- Khadija Ismayilova, investigative journalist
- Leyla Yunus, Director, Institute for Peace and Democracy
- Mehman Aliyev, Director, Turan Information Agency
- Annaghi Hajibayli, Chairman, Azerbaijani Lawyers Association
- Asabali Mustafayev, President, Democracy and Human Rights Resource Center
- Gubad Bayramov (Ibadoghlu), Chairman, Public Initiatives Center
- Avaz Zeynalli, Editor-in-chief, Khural newspaper
- Ogtay Gulaliyev, Coordinator, Public Alliance “Azerbaijan Without Political Prisoners”
- Khalid Baghirov, lawyer
- Khalig Bahadir, journalist
- Natig Jafarli, Executive secretary, Republican Alternative Movement
- Shahin Hajiyev, Editor, Turan Information Agency
- Fariz Namazov, attorney
- Nemat Karimli , attorney
- Hafiz Babali, Deputy chairman, Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety
- Hakimeldostu Mehdiyev, journalist
- Bashir Suleymanli, Director, Institute for Citizens’ Rights
- Samira Aghayeva, lawyer
- Parvin Guliyev, Youth Club public union
- Zaur Akbar, President, Youth Atlantic Treaty Association
- Latafat Malikova, Chairwoman , Regional Human Rights and Education Center
- Ulvi Hasanli, NIDA Civic Movement
- Turgut Gambar, NIDA Civic Movement
- Necmin Kamilsoy, NIDA Civic Movement
- Ilgar Taghi, brother of murdered journalist Rafig Taghi, human rights activist
- Shahriyar Gahraman, activist
- Mehman Huseynov, Chairman, Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety
- Elchin Hasanzade, journalist
- Ramiz Guliyev, journalist, former political prisoner
- Elshan Hasanov, Chairman, Monitoring Centre for Political Prisoners
- Fargana Novruzova, journalist
- Yashar Aghazade, lawyer
- Emin Huseynov, Co-founder, Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety
- Rashid Hajili, Director, Media Rights Institute
- Alovsat Aliyev, Director, LEQAT LLC
- Tahmina Taghiyeva, journalist
- Gullu Jahangirova, human rights activist
- Jasur Mammadov, Director, Caspian Defense Studies Institute
- Lachin Mamishov, journalist
- Elchin Mammad, Chairman, Public Association “Legal Education of Sumgayit Youth”
- Orkhan Mammad, journalist, Meydan TV
- Emin Aslanov, lawyer
- Fikrat Huseynli, journalist, Azadliq newspaper
- Arif Mammadov, Co-chairman, Democracy for Azerbaijan
- Sevinj Mizayeva (Osmangizi), journalist
- Ganimat Zahid, Editor-in-chief, Azadliq newspaper
- Zohrab Ismayil, Chairman, Public Association for Assistance to Free Economy
- Ordukhan Teymurkhan, human rights activist
- Nizami Abdullayev, journalist
- Ilham Hasan, Chairman, European Co-ordination Center of Musavat Party
- Idrak Abbasov, Co-founder, Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety
- Malahat Nasibova, Director, Democracy Development Resource Center
- Sabuhi Gafarov, human rights defender
- Arastun Orujlu, Director, East-West Research Center
- Anar Orujov, Director, Kanal 13
- Yashar Jafarli, human rights defender
- Elchin Abdullayev, Chairman, Democratic Institutions and Human Rights Social Union
- Leila Alieva, President, Regional Center for Strategic Studies
Signatories from international and partner organisations:
- World Organisation Against Torture
- People in Need
- International Partnership for Human Rights
- Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights
- Netherlands Helsinki Committee
- HumanRights.CH
- Crude Accountability
- Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights
- Human Rights Monitoring Institute (Lithuania)
- Analytical Center for Interethnic Cooperation and Consultations (Georgia)
- Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union
- Center for the Development of Democracy and Human Rights (Russia)
- Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law
- Center for Civil Liberties (Ukraine)
- Human Rights Movement “Bir Duino-Kyrgyzstan”
- Albanian Helsinki Committee
- Belarusian Human Rights House
- European Christian Workers Movement
- Reporters Without Borders
- Human Rights House Foundation
[1] http://www.esiweb.org/index.php?lang=en&id=156&document_ID=181
[2] https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage/16870/statement-spokesperson-cases-giyas-ibrahimov-and-bayram-mammedov_en