European Court of Human Rights dismisses former Azerbaijani Defense Minister's appeal

Having studied Rahim Gaziyev's all appeals the court made a decision to send a notification to Azerbaijani government on only one item, APA reports

The notification is connected with close legal procedure and not allowing his relatives and journalists attending the legal procedure. The former minister appealed to Strasbourg court and said that he was sentenced to death in 1995. He said that he expected the sentence to be executed for three years (life sentence was abolished in Azerbaijan according to the 3rd item of the European Convention of Human Rights in 1998), and as a result he underwent serious moral damage. The court noted that the appeal had to be given according to the 35th item of the 3rd paragraph, not according to this item.

The convention came into force in Azerbaijan on April 15 in 2002. The plaintiff basing on the 5th item of the convention according to the local legislation detention period is to seven months, but he was kept there more than a month. The former Minister's appeal was dismissed. Gaziyev stated that the preliminary court hearing held on March 12 in 1995 was unjust.

European Court of Human Rights said that it is impossible to check whether the court procedure was just or not, as this court procedure had been held before the convention came into force in Azerbaijan. Besides, the ex-Minister linked his judgment with criticizing Azerbaijani President.

The court dismissed the appeal basing that there is no such evidence in the materials.

Azerbaijani representative to European Court of Human Rights Chingiz Askerov told that the court made analogous decision about Alakram Humbatov, who declared himself the president of the so-called Talish Mughan Republic. According to the decision, the points noted by the plaintiffs do not mean the violation of the Convention.

"The court will only send notification to the Azerbaijani government with regard to the appeal on re-trial of Rahim Gaziyev in Gobustan jail in 2002-2003. Rahim Gaziyev said that the legal procedure was close and his relatives and journalists were not allowed attending the legal procedure. We will prepare a reply concerning it," he said.

Re-trial of Rahim Gaziyev in Gobustan jail was open and media and the former Minister's relatives were not prohibited to attend the trial.