Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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164. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Azerbaijan is refusing to release a person (details supplied) from an Azerbaijani prison; if his attention has been further drawn to the fact that the person's imprisonment is in violation of a clear verdict of the European Court of Human Rights which ordered the person's immediate release on 22 May 2014; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, is proposing to the Committee of Ministers that it ask the European Court of Human Rights to decide if Azerbaijan can be considered as acting in accordance with the European Convention of Human Rights; and his views on such a move. [44825/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I am deeply concerned by the case in question which involves an opposition politician, Mr. Ilgar Mammadov, whose arrest and pre-trial detention have been found by the European Court of Human Rights to have violated the Convention on Human Rights. Ireland has repeatedly called on the Government of Azerbaijan to release Mr Mammadov without delay and to fully implement the judgment in this and other related cases. Ireland is a firm supporter of the Council of Europe which it views as an indispensable platform for the promotion and protection of human rights standards across Europe. Ireland places particular emphasis on the importance of the European Convention on Human Rights and on the obligation on Member States to abide by a final judgment of the European Court of Human Rights in any case to which they are a party. In light of Azerbaijan’s ongoing refusal to implement this judgment, Ireland fully supports Secretary General Jagland’s proposal that the Committee of Ministers refer to the Court the question of whether Azerbaijan has failed to fulfil its obligation to abide by the judgment of the Court in this case. I would urge the Government of Azerbaijan to implement the judgment immediately, to avoid the need to refer the case to the Court.