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Joint Working Group for Implementation of International Human Rights Standards holds meeting

09 December 2011 13:06 (UTC +04:00)

APA reports that the joint working group expressed opinion on the report â€œThe spring that never blossomed. Freedoms suppressed in Azerbaijanâ€ released by the Amnesty International.

Co-chair of the working group Shahin Jamalov said the Amnesty Internationalâ€™s report is groundless and biased.
â€œCourt passed a judgment on Bakhtiyar Hajiyevâ€™s arrest on charges of draft evasion. If this decision had not beenpassed, it would have caused avoidance of constitutional duties by others. It is not right to declare that Bakhtiyar Hajiyev is a prisoner of conscience. It is groundless to call somebody a political prisoner or prisoner of conscience simply basing on the subjective criteria.â€

Member of the working group, judge of the Constitutional Court of Belgium Jean-Paul Moerman said up to now the statements of the Amnesty International had been far from reality.
â€œSuch reports may form negative attitude towards democratic institutions. This is a negative case and may impede development of democracy in the region,â€ he said.

Member of the Slovenian parliament and PACE Monitoring Committee Zmago JelinÄiÄ and member of the Belgian parliament Alain Destexhe accused those who prepared the report of expressing biased view.
â€œThe principles and criteria of unbiased research have been violated in the report, alternative sources of information have not been used. It has been prepared with the view of defending the initially determined position. Unfortunately, the authors of the report refer to the similar and one-sided sources. For example, in the chapter on civil society, the information refers to one and same source, concretely to Baku bureau of the radio Liberty. The information in another chapter also refers to such one-sided sources. This casts doubt on the objectivity of the report released by the Amnesty International.â€