Europe Plus

A known conflict expert at the Institute for Peace and Democracy (IPD)
Arif Yunus was arrested today when carrying food to his arrested wife
Leyla Yunus in the Baku Detention Center.

According to the lawyer Khalid Bagirov, Yunus was first taken to the 27th
police station in the Yasamal district. Then the lawyer was informed
that Yunus was brought to the Investigation Department for Serious
Crimes of the Prosecutor General’s Office to the inspector Ibrahim
Lemberansky.

The lawyer expressed fears that Arif Yunus will be also arrested.

On August 5 the Nasimi district court ruled decision to arrest for 3
months a conflictologist Arif Yunus. On July 30, he was taken under
police supervision, and his wife, the IMD Director Leyla Yunus, was
arrested. The family is charged with treason and other crimes.

According to the press service of the Prosecutor General’s Office, the
arrest of Yunus is motivated by violation of the requirements of the
criminal procedural law. In particular, Yunus repeatedly, without police
permission, “left the territory of the district, where he lived, and
met with officials being prosecuted, or who may be subjected to
persecution, was engaged in Internet correspondence, spoke in an
interview with the media, which provided one-sided, false information,”
reads the statement of the Prosecutor Office.

contact.az

The EU is very concerned at the latest clashes in Nagorno-Karabakh, calling in a statement on both sides to immediately respect the ceasefire and refrain from the use of force.

“We are very concerned by the latest armed incidents which caused a number of casualties along the Line of Contact and the Armenian-Azerbaijani State border in recent days,” said the statement from the spokesperson of the EU External Action service, issued on 3 August.

“We call on both sides to immediately respect the ceasefire, refrain from the use of force or any threat thereof, and continue efforts towards a peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”

The statement recalled that the EU was ready to engage in renewed efforts towards a political settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and to further contribute to peace-building efforts, in full complementarity with the OSCE Minsk Group.

Human rights defender Leyla Yunus and her husband Arif Yunus have been arrested on 30 July 2014. Leyla Yunus was sentenced to 3 months pre-trial detention, whilst her husband is under police control and not allowed to leave Baku. We call for Leyla Yunus’ immediate and unconditional release, as we see this as part of the persecution against human rights defenders and activists in Azerbaijan.

As expressed in their joint letter of 30 April 2014 to the Minister of Internal Affairs and the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Azerbaijan, member and partner NGOs of the Human Rights House Network expressed their concern that the persecution is related to her outspoken criticism in the past few days against the detention of Rauf Mirgadirov, the investigative journalist of the leading Russian-language newspaper Zerkalo (Mirror), who is now facing charges of treason for his efforts in the peace building process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Rauf Mirgadirov was deported from Turkey on 19 April 2014 and then arrested in Baku. Rauf Mirkadirov participated in the numerous joint projects between the Institute for Peace and Democracy and Armenian NGOs.

Leyla Yunus and Arif Yunus were both arrested on Wednesday, 30 July 2014. Following 6 hours of interogation, Leyla Yunus was sentenced to 3 months pre-trial detention. The charges held against her are State treason (article 274 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan), large-scale fraud (article 178.3.2), forgery (article 320), tax evasion (article 213), and illegal business (article 192).

Arif Yunus is facing charges of State treason and fraud. He is not under detention but under police control and not allowed to leave Baku, Azerbaijan’s capital.

Since 28 April 2014, Leyla Yunus and Arif Yunus were not allowed to leave the country and their passports were confiscated. Leyla Yunus has been arguing since that the Prosecutor’s Office does not have any legal ground to confiscate her passport. The pre-trial detention of Leyla Yunus is hence unjustified, as she would not be able to leave the country without her passport.

“We see an unprecedented wave of repression against human rights defenders and activists in Azerbaijan. Persecution against Leyla Yunus and her husband Arif Yunus is part of it. Leyla Yunus must be immediately and unconditionally released. Leyla and Arif Yunus must also be rehabilitated in their right to free movement”, stated Maria Dahle, Executive Director of the Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF).

The case against Leyla Yunus and Arif Yunus is one more politically motivated detention in Azerbaijan. The charges of tax evasion and illegal business are indeed the same as those held against Anar Mammadli and Bashir Suleymanli.

Rasul Jafarov with singer Loreen (© Civil Rights Defenders)Also on 30 July 2014, the human rights defender Rasul Jafarov, coordinator of the campaign “Sing for Democracy” has also been banned from travelling abroad. It appears he might face an investigation based on similar charges as those held against Anar Mammadli and Bashir Suleymanli.

Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF)

She is the latest opposition figure to be jailed in what rights groups say is a crackdown by the government in Baku.

Dozens of journalists, opposition activists and bloggers have been arrested in Azerbaijan in recent years, accused of possessing drugs and weapons or charged with hooliganism.

But according to human rights groups, the charges are trumped up – an attempt by the government of authoritarian President Ilham Aliyev to stamp out any dissent in the oil-rich country.

Mr Aliyev won a third term in last year’s presidential election, describing it as a “triumph of democracy”.

But the country’s opposition groups alleged widespread fraud.

The EU has expressed concern at the criminal charges filed against former Georgian President Mikheil
Saakashvili, saying it would closely monitor legal proceedings against
members of the former government and current opposition in Georgia.

“We take note with concern that the Georgian Public Prosecutor has filed criminal charges against former President Saakashvili,” said a statement issued by the spokespersons of the EU External Action Service.

“While
none is above the law, prosecutions in Georgia should be transparent,
proportionate, free of political motivation, and adhering strictly to
due process. The EU will closely monitor these and other legal
proceedings against members of the former government and current
opposition in Georgia.”

The statement recalled that, “the
EU-Georgia Association Agreement, ratified only two weeks ago by the
Georgian Parliament, commits Georgia to adhere to common values
including respect for the principles of the rule of law and good
governance”.

The EU urged all sides to move beyond past conflicts and to focus on the country’s future. “Georgia faces great challenges and these require forward-looking leadership ready to break the mould of polarised politics.”

The European Union today agreed a package of additional sanctions targeting sectoral cooperation and exchanges with Russia, sending a “strong warning”
to Moscow over the illegal annexation of Crimea and the continued
destabilisation of Eastern Ukraine. The measures will limit access to EU
capital markets for Russian State-owned financial institutions, impose
an embargo on trade in arms, establish an export ban for dual use goods
for military end users, and curtail Russian access to sensitive
technologies particularly in the field of the oil sector.

The package reinforces the recently expanded listing of persons and
entities undermining Ukrainian territorial integrity and sovereignty,
the suspension of EIB and EBRD financing, the restriction of investment
and trade with Crimea and Sevastopol, and the reassessment of the Russia
EU bilateral cooperation with a view to reducing the level of the
cooperation.

In a joint statement
today, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and President
of the Council of the European Union Herman Van Rompuy said the measures
were meant as a strong warning: “illegal annexation of territory and
deliberate destabilisation of a neighbouring sovereign country cannot
be accepted in 21st century Europe. Furthermore, when the violence
created spirals out of control and leads to the killing of almost 300
innocent civilians in their flight from the Netherlands to Malaysia, the
situation requires urgent and determined response.”

They said the EU would fulfil its obligations to protect and ensure
the security of its citizens, and would stand by its neighbours and
partners.

“Since the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis, the European Union
has been calling on the Russian leadership to work towards a peaceful
resolution,” the EU leaders said. But, despite some mixed messages from
Moscow, “there has been scarce delivery on commitments”.

“Our call has been, in practice, left unheeded. Arms and
fighters continue flowing into Ukraine from the Russian Federation.
Strong Russian State sponsored nationalist propaganda continues
supporting the illegal actions of armed separatists. We have witnessed
with anger and frustration the delays in providing international access
to the site of the air crash, the tampering with the remains of the
plane, and the disrespectful handling of the deceased.”

Barroso and Van Rompuy said the EU and Russia had important common
interests that would benefit from open and frank dialogue, from
increased cooperation and exchanges. “But we cannot pursue this
important positive agenda when Crimea is illegally annexed, when the
Russian Federation supports armed revolt in Eastern Ukraine, when the
violence unleashed kills innocent civilians.”

They said the new package of measures was a powerful signal to the leaders of the Russian Federation: “destabilising
Ukraine, or any other Eastern European neighbouring State, will bring
heavy costs to its economy. Russia will find itself increasingly
isolated by its own actions.”

The EU remains ready to reverse its decisions and reengage with
Russia when it starts contributing actively and without ambiguities to
finding a solution to the Ukrainian crisis, they added.