by Tyler Yates
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

BAKU, Azerbaijan – A government led “beautification” project in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, has resulted in forced evictions, house demolitions, and illegal expropriations.

The project was begun in 2009 to address what President Ilham Aliyev has called an “issue…of biggest concern to people,” the growing disrepair of the capital city and its suburbs.

The long-term plan began with the laying of roads and the building of new infrastructure.  Water and sanitation are to be improved, as are the condition of schools and cultural monuments.

Ilham Aliyev cited the renovations as a necessary step in familiarizing the rest of the world with Azerbaijan, and bettering their position internationally.

In the continuation of the project, the government has begun to expropriate and demolish the homes of many of its private citizens living in the city center.  Human Rights Watch puts the number of displaced homeowners and residents somewhere from in the hundreds to possibly the thousands, creating widespread violations of private property rights.

The “so-called ‘beautification’ project…isn’t just destroying homes in Baku, it’s destroying people’s lives,” said Jane Buchanan, Europe and Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch.  “The Azerbaijani authorities need to put an immediate halt to forced expropriations, evictions, and demolitions in Baku.”

On 13 June 2011 police were called to a building slated for demolition after the owners and tenants of the building painted a message on the interior walls: “This is private property and the destruction of this house violates the Constitution, and the European Convention on Human Rights.”

The house is owned by Leyla Yunus, a leading human rights defender in Azerbaijan, and it offices numerous human rights groups that provide crucial legal and other support to victims of human rights abuses in Azerbaijan.  Its destruction would be a huge blow to Azerbaijani human rights.

There have been reports from other Azerbaijani homeowners that demolition crews have begun demolishing some homes with the residents still inside.  Other residents have been forced out by police and detained only to come home to a pile of rubble with most of their possessions destroyed and valuables missing.

Compensation in many of the cases has been far below market value for property in Central Baku.  Authorities have designated a price of 1,500 manat (US $1,900) per square meter, regardless of the land’s use, age, or condition.  Independent appraisals have found the land to be worth around 4,000 manat (US $5,605) per square meter.  Compensation does not include the destruction of possessions.

There is no basis for the expropriations in Azerbaijani law, which guarantees the rights to private property, and allows expropriations only in limited cases with a court order.

For more information, please see:

Human Rights Watch – Azerbaijan: Halt Illegal House Demolitions, Forced Evictions – 13 June 2011

Human Rights Watch – Open Letter to President Aliyev Regarding House Demolition and Expropriation – 13 June 2011

News.AZ – All social and economic issues to be settled in Baku suburb – 25 May 2011

News.AZ – President inspects development work in Baku villages – 20 May 2011