The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (CoE) has formally notified Azerbaijan of its intention to launch legal action related to the implementation of the Ilgar Mammadov v. Azerbaijan judgment from the European Court of Human Rights.

A press release, which was issued at the end of the meeting of the Committee of Ministers, reads as follows, in particular:

“The court ruled in May 2014 that the arrest and extended detention of Mr Mammadov, an opposition politician, was in violation of several articles of the European Convention on Human Rights. The court found, in particular, that the actual purpose of his prosecution and detention was to silence or punish him for criticising the government, in violation of Article 18 of the convention. To date the court has found a violation of Article 18 in only five judgments and in all of these cases, except Ilgar Mammadov v. Azerbaijan, the applicants were released.

“However, more than three years later, Mr Mammadov remains in prison.”