CAT/C/41/D/306/2006
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by the complainants but found it unlikely that E. J. would face a risk of persecution if he returned to
Azerbaijan, where several political opponents had recently been released. The complainants appeal
to the Aliens Appeals Board was rejected on 1 November 2005. The complainants’ application for
permanent residence permits on humanitarian grounds was also denied on 25 July 2006 and a
request for review of this decision was rejected on 17 August 2006.
2.7 As to the general human rights situation in Azerbaijan, the complainants provide copies of
reports from Human Rights Watch, dated January 2006, Amnesty International, dated 2005 and the
International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights, dated 2006. All reports denounce a consistent
pattern of gross, flagrant and mass violations of human rights particularly towards political
opponents.
The complaint:
3.
The complainants claim that Sweden would violate article 3 of the Convention in deporting
them to Azerbaijan, as there is a real risk that E. J. will be subjected to torture, on account of his
membership and activities on behalf of the ADP.
State party’s submissions on admissibility and merits:
4.1 On 27 September 2007, the State party challenged the admissibility and merits of the
complaint. It confirms that the complainants have exhausted domestic remedies but argues that the
complaint is inadmissible, as it is manifestly ill-founded, and is an abuse of the right of submission
on account of the submission of documents which the State party claims are not authentic. If the
Committee considers the complaint admissible, the State party denies that it would violate the
Convention by deporting the complainants to Azerbaijan.
4.2 The State party refers to the Committee's jurisprudence2 that the existence of a pattern of
gross, flagrant or mass violations of human rights in a country does not as such constitute sufficient
grounds for determining that a particular person would be at risk of being subjected to torture upon
his return to that country. Additional grounds must exist to show that the individual would be
personally at risk. It also refers to the Committee's jurisprudence3 that for the purposes of article 3 of
the Convention, the individual concerned must face a foreseeable, real and personal risk of being
tortured in the country to which he is returned. In addition, it is for the complainants to present an
arguable case and the risk of torture must be assessed on grounds that go beyond mere theory or
2
Communication No.150/1999, S.L. v. Sweden, Views adopted on 11 May 2001, para. 6.3 and
Communication No.213/2002, E.J.V.M. v. Sweden, Views adopted on 14 November 2003, para. 8.3.
3
Communication No.103/1998, S.M.R. and M.M.R. v. Sweden, Views adopted on 5 May 1999, para.
9.7.