UN UPR shadow report on Azerbaijan submitted by the IBAHRI

Member States of the United Nations (UN) have their human rights records evaluated under cycles of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). The UN describes the process as ‘State-driven … under the auspices of the Human Rights Council, which provides the opportunity for each State to declare what actions they have taken to improve the human rights situations in their countries and to fulfil their human rights obligations.’¹ Included in the procedure is the opportunity for civil society stakeholders to contribute shadow reports on the State under review.

Prior to the 30th session of the UN’s UPR Working Group, in May 2018 the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) submitted a shadow report on Azerbaijan’s human rights record. In the report, the IBAHRI drew attention to the low number of qualified Azerbaijani lawyers and lack of independence at the Azerbaijan Bar Association. Several cases involving the disbarment of human rights lawyers by the Azerbaijan Bar Association were highlighted.

¹ https://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/upr/pages/uprmain