Demolition of 10,000 houses in central Baku planned by authorities violates people's rights, NGO activists assert

In central Baku, they have started mass resettlement of residents; they plan to demolish about 10,000 old buildings inhabited by about 40,000 people, the authorities of the Azerbaijani capital have stated. They explain these measures by the need to improve the city and plan to create greenery zones there.

The residents subject to resettlement are dissatisfied with the offered compensations. NGO activists fear that the demolition and resettlement programme will be accompanied by massive violations of the rights of Baku residents, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

Earlier, citizens' resettlement in Baku was accompanied by violations of property rights, said Muzaffar Bakhysh, the head of the Research Centre "Lawful State".

According to his story, under the law, if the property is not alienated "for the state needs to build strategically-important objects", the compensation should be established on a negotiated basis between the buyer and the property owner.

Vugar Bairamov, the head of the Centre for Social Development, also believes that the compensations offered to residents of demolished houses are insufficient.

According to Leila Yunus, the director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy (IPD), residents should complain to courts and set up their public committees.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in May 2013 the Human Rights Watch demanded an immediate halt of the campaign of forced eviction of Baku residents.