Human rights lawyer Yalchin Imanov has won a case against the Azerbaijani government in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), over disbarment for speaking publicly about allegations of state torture.
The Azerbaijan Bar Association disbarred Imanov after he petitioned the authorities over the torture of imprisoned Muslim Unity Movement member Abbas Huseynov.
Huseynov was detained in November 2015 in the northeastern town of Nardaran during a Muslim Unity Movement meeting to discuss religious topics. Police subsequently raided the meeting, leading to a shootout in which six people died, including two police officers. As a result, eighteen people were arrested, including Baghirzada and Huseynov, who were charged with violent seizure of power, terrorism, and premeditated murder. Both were sentenced to 20 years in prison in January 2017.
At the end of July that year, Huseynov was transferred to Gobustan Prison, a high-security facility in Baku, where he was reportedly tortured.
‘He was tied to a pole in the middle of the prison for four to five hours, then symbolically crucified in his cell for two days, his hands and feet bound’, Imanov told OC Media.
The following month, Imanov met with Huseynov, during which he saw bruises and injuries on Huseynov’s body. As a result, he filed petitions with the General Prosecutor’s Office, the Penitentiary Service, and the Public Defender.
‘I made a public statement about what I had witnessed regarding [Huseynov’s] mistreatment. Later, the Penitentiary Service applied a complaint to the Bar Association regarding me, [claiming] that I had slandered its employees and published and disclosed information without conducting an official investigation’, Imanov said.
The Bar Association initiated disciplinary proceedings based on this complaint, concluding that Imanov had grossly violated the requirements of the Law on Advocacy, and the Regulation on the Rules of Conduct for Advocates. The decision to disbar him was finalised in 2019.
Imanov unsuccessfully appealed the decisions in Azerbaijan, before trying again in the ECHR. There, the court ruled that Azerbaijan had violated Imanov’s freedom of expression, noting that his disbarment was the ‘most severe professional sanction’ that could be applied against him as a member of the association. The court awarded Imanov €10,000 ($12,000) in compensation.
Imanov told OC Media that he did not believe the authorities would recognise the judgement and reinstate him, as Azerbaijan has not recognised ECHR decisions since January 2024.
‘The country is completely authoritarian, and in this situation, independent lawyers become a headache for such a government, and this government is interested in a system that will not create problems. And independent lawyers are one of the main competitors of the authoritarian regime’, Imanov stated.
Even if reinstated, he said he did not think he would be able to work under the current circumstances.
‘I did not violate any disciplinary rules. For example, I acted in accordance with the disciplinary rules, the law on advocacy and the Code of Ethics for Advocates’, he said. ‘Because before becoming an advocate, one takes an oath and promises to protect the rights of their client within the limits established by law.’
‘The fate of one person is more important than the membership of 100 lawyers in the bar association’, Imanov said.
The Azerbaijan Bar Association did not respond when asked about the possible reinstatement of Imanov’s membership in the organisation.
Aytan Farhadova
