Motion for a resolution | Doc. 14538 | 24 April 2018

Political prisoners in Azerbaijan

Signatories: Mr Pieter OMTZIGT, Netherlands, EPP/CD ; Ms Boriana ÅBERG, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Ms Thorhildur Sunna ÆVARSDÓTTIR, Iceland, SOC ; Ms Petra BAYR, Austria, SOC ; Mr Goran BEUS RICHEMBERGH, Croatia, ALDE ; Ms Maryvonne BLONDIN, France, SOC ; Mr Piet De BRUYN, Belgium, NR ; Mr Boriss CILEVIČS, Latvia, SOC ; Sir Jeffrey DONALDSON, United Kingdom, EC ; Ms Sabina GLASOVAC, Croatia, SOC ; Ms Gabriela HEINRICH, Germany, SOC ; Mr Tiny KOX, Netherlands, UEL ; Ms Aicha LABLAK, Morocco ; Ms Sabien LAHAYE-BATTHEU, Belgium, ALDE ; Mr Carlo LUCHERINI, Italy, SOC ; Ms Kerstin LUNDGREN, Sweden, ALDE ; Mr Henk OVERBEEK, Netherlands, UEL ; Mr Aleksander POCIEJ, Poland, EPP/CD ; Ms Ingjerd SCHOU, Norway, EPP/CD ; Mr Frank SCHWABE, Germany, SOC ; Ms Olena SOTNYK, Ukraine, ALDE ; Ms Petra STIENEN, Netherlands, ALDE ; Mr André VALLINI, France, SOC ; Ms Ute VOGT, Germany, SOC

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.

In 2013, the Parliamentary Assembly rejected a report on political prisoners in Azerbaijan, prepared by Christoph Strässer (SOC, Germany). The Independent Investigation Body inter alia found that Mr Volontè played an important role in undermining the Strässer report. Furthermore, the Investigation Body found, on the basis of the evidence before it, that substantial grounds exist to believe that Mr Volontè, Mr Suleymanov and Mr Mammadov engaged in activities of a corruptive nature.

Recent cases at the European Court of Human Rights make clear that the problem of political prisoners in Azerbaijan is real, see for instance the case of Mr Mammadov.

It is therefore appropriate that a new report is written on the issue of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, which is free from any suspicion of corruptive influences.