Powers of three Azerbaijani lawyers restored

The Presidium of the Azerbaijani Bar Association (ABA) has recalled the lawsuit against the lawyers, Shakhla Gumbatova, Irada Djavadova and Tyurkel Suleimanly, allowing them to restart their work.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in November 2020, the ABA suspended Ms Gumbatova's powers. Activists suggested that they wanted to remove her from defending rights of the people persecuted for political reasons.

This March, Gumbatova became one of 12 laureates of the US State Department's Women's Courage Award for her achievements in defending human rights.

In June 2018, the ABA's Presidium decided to seek the termination of Irada Djavadova's powers through the court. Human rights defenders treated this as an authorities' attempt to get rid of the unwanted lawyer.

Emin Guseinov, the director of the Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), believes that Gumbatova's reinstatement became possible thanks to broad international support.

"However, there are still lawyers expelled from the ABA for defending political prisoners and making public torture facts. The international community should also strive to restore the powers of Yalchin Imanov, Khalid Bagirov and Alaifa Gasanova," Mr Guseinov has added. He drew attention to the fact that the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) had also recognized the illegality of Khalid Bagirov's removal from the advocacy.