FIFTH SECTION
DECISION
Application no. 59188/17
Fuzuli SHAHHUSEYNOV against Azerbaijan
and 7 other applications
(see appended table)
The European Court of Human Rights (Fifth Section), sitting on 8 September 2022 as a Committee composed of:
Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström, President,
Ivana Jelić,
Kateřina Šimáčková, judges,
and Viktoriya Maradudina, Acting Deputy Section Registrar,
Having regard to the above applications lodged on the various dates indicated in the appended table,
Having regard to the formal declarations accepting a friendly settlement of the cases,
Having deliberated, decides as follows:
FACTS AND PROCEDURE
The list of applicants and their representatives is set out in the appended table.
The applicants’ complaints under Article 11 of the Convention concerning the unlawful or disproportionate measures against organisers and participants of public assemblies were communicated to the Azerbaijani Government (“the Government”). The applicants’ other complaints based on the same facts were also communicated under Article 6 of the Convention, given the relevant well-established case-law of the Court.
The applicant in application no. 16094/18 died on 10 March 2019. On 27 February 2022 Mr Valikhan Khalig oglu Huseynov, the applicant’s father, expressed his wish to continue the proceedings before the Court in the applicant’s stead. The Court notes that in various cases in which an applicant has died in the course of the Convention proceedings, it has taken into account the statements of the applicant’s heirs or of close family members expressing the wish to pursue the proceedings before the Court (see, among other authorities, Jėčius v. Lithuania, no. 34578/97, § 41, ECHR 2000-IX; Pisarkiewicz v. Poland, no. 18967/02, §§ 30-33, 22 January 2008; and Ergezen v. Turkey, no. 73359/10, §§ 27-30, 8 April 2014). The Court has accepted that the next-of-kin or heir may in principle pursue the application, provided that he or she has sufficient interest in the case (see Centre for Legal Resources on behalf of Valentin Câmpeanu v. Romania [GC], no. 47848/08, § 97, ECHR 2014, and Ksenz and Others v. Russia, nos. 45044/06 and 5 others, § 86, 12 December 2017). In view of the above and having regard to the circumstances of the case, the Court holds that Mr Valikhan Khalig oglu Huseynov has standing to continue the present proceedings in his late son’s stead.
The Court received the friendly-settlement declarations, signed by the parties, under which the applicants and the applicant’s heir in application no. 16094/18 agreed to waive any further claims against Azerbaijan in respect of the facts giving rise to these applications, subject to an undertaking by the Government to pay them the amounts detailed in the appended table. These amounts will be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable on the date of payment, and will be payable within three months from the date of notification of the Court’s decision. In the event of failure to pay these amounts within the above-mentioned three-month period, the Government undertake to pay simple interest on them, from the expiry of that period until settlement, at a rate equal to the marginal lending rate of the European Central Bank during the default period plus three percentage points.
The payment will constitute the final resolution of the cases.
THE LAW
Having regard to the similar subject matter of the applications, the Court finds it appropriate to examine them jointly in a single decision.
The Court takes note of the friendly settlement reached between the parties. It is satisfied that the settlement is based on respect for human rights as defined in the Convention and the Protocols thereto and finds no reasons to justify a continued examination of the applications.
In view of the above, it is appropriate to strike the cases out of the list.
For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,
Decides to join the applications;
Decides that the applicant’s father and heir in application no. 16094/18 can pursue the application in his late son’s stead;
Decides to strike the applications out of its list of cases in accordance with Article 39 of the Convention.
Done in English and notified in writing on 29 September 2022.
Viktoriya Maradudina Stéphanie Mourou-Vikström
Acting Deputy Registrar President
APPENDIX
List of applications raising complaints under Articles 11 and 6 of the Convention
(unlawful or disproportionate measures against organisers and participants of public assemblies and unfair trial in administrative offence proceedings)
No.
Application no.
Date of introduction
Applicant’s name
Year of birth
Representative’s name and location
Date of receipt of Government’s declaration
Date of receipt of applicant’s declaration
Amount awarded for pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage
(in euros)[1]
Amount awarded for costs and expenses per application
(in euros)[2]
59188/17
04/08/2017
Fuzuli
Khanhuseyn oglu SHAHHUSEYNOV
1968
Javad JAVADOV
Baku
30/06/2022
08/07/2022
2,600
250
(to be paid directly to the representative Mr Javad Javadov’s bank account)
68886/17
09/09/2017
Imamaddin
Novruz oglu MAHARRAMLI
1989
Javad JAVADOV
Baku
30/06/2022
08/07/2022
2,600
250
(to be paid directly to the representative Mr Javad Javadov’s bank account)
70434/17
15/09/2017
Mahammad
Asgar oglu
HABIBOV
1996
Javad JAVADOV
Baku
30/06/2022
08/07/2022
2,600
250
(to be paid directly to the representative Mr Javad Javadov’s bank account)
70436/17
15/09/2017
Salman
Abasali oglu
SULTANOV
1990
Javad JAVADOV
Baku
30/06/2022
08/07/2022
2,600
250
(to be paid directly to the representative Mr Javad Javadov’s bank account)
12712/18
02/03/2018
Azer
Asabali oglu SHAMKHALOV
1993
Khalid BAGIROV
Baku
Ulkar ALIYEVA
Baku
30/06/2022
28/07/2022
2,600
250
(to be paid directly to the representative Mr Khalid Bagirov’s bank account)
16090/18
19/03/2018
Ayaz
Habib oglu MAHARRAMOV
1982
Tural HAJIBEYLI
Baku
30/06/2022
23/06/2022
2,600
250
16094/18
19/03/2018
Khalgi
Valikhan oglu HUSEYNOV
Born in 1989
Deceased in 2019
Applicant’s heir
Valikhan
Khalig oglu
HUSEYNOV
1961
Tural HAJIBEYLI
Baku
25/07/2022
Date of receipt of the declaration of the applicant’s heir
28/06/2022
2,600
250
16215/18
19/03/2018
Babak
Gazanfar oglu
HASANOV
1973
Tural HAJIBEYLI
Baku
30/06/2022
23/06/2022
2,600
250
[1] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants or heir of the applicant in application no. 16094/18
[2] Plus any tax that may be chargeable to the applicants or heir of the applicant in application no. 16094/18.