Nasibova and Others v. Azerbaijan

FIFTH SECTION

Applications nos. 3039/09 and 4903/09 Malahat Ibrahim gizi NASIBOVA and RESOURCE CENTRE FOR DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT OF NGOs against Azerbaijan and Ilgar Elbayi oglu NASIBOV against Azerbaijan

(see appended table)

The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting on 9 July 2020 as a Committee composed of:

Ganna Yudkivska, President,

Lado Chanturia,

Anja Seibert-Fohr, judges,

and Liv Tigerstedt, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,

Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the cases,

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

The list of applicants is set out in the appended table.

The applicants were represented by Mr R. Hajili, a lawyer based in Strasbourg.

In application no. 3039/09, the applicants, an NGO and a journalist who was one of the co-directors of the NGO, complained under Articles 6, 8, 10 and 13 of the Convention concerning the allegedly unlawful searches and seizures in the office of the NGO and the co-director’s home and the alleged lack of access to a court and alleged lack of effective domestic remedies in connection with their complaints concerning those searches and seizures. In application no. 4903/09, the applicant, a journalist who was the other co ‑ director of the same NGO (and husband of the individual applicant in application no. 3039/09), complained under Articles 6, 7, 8 and 10 of the Convention concerning the fairness of the criminal proceedings against him and concerning the same allegedly unlawful searches and seizures in the NGO’s office and in his home. The above-mentioned complaints were communicated to the Azerbaijani Government (“the Government”).

The Court received friendly-settlement declarations under which the applicants agreed to waive any further claims against Azerbaijan in respect of the facts giving rise to these applications, subject to an undertaking by the Government to pay them the amounts detailed in the appended table. These amounts will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three-month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on them, from the expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.

The payment will constitute the final resolution of the cases.

THE LAW

Having regard to the close links between the two applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.

The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the applications.

In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the cases out of the list.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Decides to join the applications;

Decides to strike the applications out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention.

Done in English and notified in writing on 30 July 2020.

Liv Tigerstedt Ganna Yudkivska Acting Deputy Registrar President

APPENDIX

List of applications raising complaints under Articles 6, 8, 10 and 13 of the Convention

No.

Application no. Date of introduction

Applicant’s name

Date of birth

Representative’s name and location

Date of receipt of Government’s declaration000

Date of receipt of Applicant’s declaration

Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage and costs and expenses per application

(in euros) [1]

3039/09

28/12/2008

Malahat Ibrahim gizi NASIBOVA

1969

RESOURCE CENTRE FOR DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT OF NGOS

Rashid HAJILI

01/06/2020

10/04/2020

5,500

4903/09

15/12/2008

Ilgar Elbayi oglu NASIBOV

1965

Rashid HAJILI

01/06/2020

08/03/2020

11,600

[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants.