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The HFHR has presented the second opinion on the new draft legislative guidelines for the law on video surveillance put forward by the Ministry of Interior. As compared with the original draft of December 2013, the current version contains several changes enhancing protection against the excessive use of cameras which may interfere with the right to privacy. Yet some proposals of the Ministry still raise doubts.

The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights has sent a letter to the management of Atletico Madrid in which it has raised the issue of the club’s funding by the Azerbaijani authorities. In the HFHR’s opinion Atletico Madrid players contribute to the promotion of President Ilham Aliyev’s regime by appearing in shirts with the slogan “Azerbaijan. The land of fire”. “We believe this conduct is not worthy of a club with such an excellent sports tradition”, reads the Foundation’s letter.

There is a high risk that in the first half of 2015 EU funds for legal aid for foreigners will not be available. Non-governmental organisations dealing with the protection of foreigners’ rights in Poland are sounding an alarm.

Last week Intigam Aliyev, a well-known Azerbaijani lawyer and human rights defender, was arrested. For years, Intigam Aliyev has been representing applicants before the European Court of Human Rights, as part of Legal Education Society’s activities. He has won over 49 cases in the ECtHR.

The currently applicable statutory regulations governing the rules of access of secret services to telecommunication data violate the constitutional right to privacy, the Constitutional Tribunal ruled last week.

Last week, Rasul Jafarov, a leading human rights defender in Azerbaijan, has been arrested by the Azerbaijani authorities. His arrest is related to the mounting repression from the Azerbaijani authorities against civic society activists and opposition parties.

Since 2003, immigration laws have been applicable that at the UE level govern the right of third country citizens to family reunification. Nevertheless, the procedure is riddled with a whole range of practical problems. Individual EU Member States differ in their interpretation and application of laws based on directives. Currently, the European Commission is carrying out a consultation of guidelines aimed to standardise the practice in this regard. The HFHR has taken part in this consultation.

The European Court of Human Rights has entered judgments in the cases brought by applications of Al-Nashiri and Abu Zubaydah, allegedly detained and tortured in a CIA secret prison in Poland. The judges unanimously ruled that a number of human rights violations had occurred in the cases of both applicants, pointing to abuses of the prohibition of torture, the right to a fair trial or right to personal freedom and safety. The Court also criticised the Polish government for the lack of cooperation during the case which resulted in a breach of the Convention’s Article 38.

“Over the last two years, there has been a visible improvement in the organisation of the cabinet stage of the legislative process”, reveals the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights report on the legislative process in Poland.