22:32, 4 October 2018

European Commissioner supports rights defender Emin Guseinov at ECtHR

Emin Guseinov. Photo from the website of the Council of Europe https://www.coe.int

Dunja Miyatovic, the Commissioner of the Council of Europe for Human Rights has asked the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg to consider the case of depriving Emin Guseinov, a journalist and rights defender, of his Azerbaijani citizenship in the context of persecution of dissidents in the country.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in May the ECtHR began communication on the complaint of Emin Guseinov, the Executive Director of the Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), who complained of being forced to renounce his Azerbaijani citizenship. Four international NGOs sent their opinions in support of the journalist to the ECtHR.

In August 2014, after the authorities searched the IRFS's office, Guseinov found refuge at the Swiss Embassy in Baku. He complained about being deprived of his citizenship on January 14, 2016. He stated that he was deprived of his citizenship in order to hinder his human rights activities.

According to the website of the Council of Europe, the Commissioner Miyatovic noted that critics of the authorities are repressed in Azerbaijan. According to her story, the most seriously human rights are violated when, like in Guseinov's case, a person becomes stateless.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on October 4, 2018 at 07:01 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medjid

Source: CK correspondent