CAT/C/41/D/306/2006 Page 7 translation the documents submitted by them to support their case were incorrectly defined as “arrest letters”/arrest warrants” and are in fact “judgements” as described by the State party. 5.2 The complainants submit that it is hard to contest the credentials of the lawyer engaged by the Swedish Embassy in Ankara, since no specific information is given about him. They question whether this lawyer is independent and, without any relation to the current regime, and highlight the widespread corruption which, they claim, must be taken into account when assessing the veracity of this lawyer’s findings5. They question how this lawyer obtained this information without connections to the current regime. As to the information from A. S., that E. J. was never a member of the ADP, the complainants argue that the State party has provided no written evidence to this effect, but that this information was only provided orally. They regret that they have been unable to contact Mr. Shabazov themselves to deny that he made such a statement but claim that since his son was imprisoned in Azerbaijan, it has been impossible to reach him. As to the information given by the director of E. J.’s ex-university, the complainants explain that it stands to reason that a director of a state-controlled organ would never admit that a politically active person was expelled, as such a confession would be an admission that persecution on the basis of political opinion exists. They also deny that E. J. ever had to pay university fees, due to his athletic achievements. The complainants reiterate that the judgements are genuine and cannot understand why the judges in question deny having signed them. They argue that they may have been threatened inter alia by the government to make such false statements. In short, the State party is only basing its decision on the findings of one person – the lawyer who drafted the report. 5.3 The complainants submit that the fact that the ADP is an officially registered and legal organization in Azerbaijan does not de facto constitute a guarantee that E. J. will not be arrested and tortured upon return. ADP members have been arrested and tortured before and a number of well known sources report that the government still persecutes political opponents, whether they are registered or not. E. J. held a leading position in the party, compared to ordinary members, in that he was party secretary for the Nerimov District, and subsequently appointed instructor during which time he also became responsible for “strategic questions and education”. However, the complainants also argue that being at a lower level within a party makes it easier for the authorities to persecute the individuals concerned as, unlike internationally well-known leaders, such individuals do not have the protection of the international community. In their view, the authorities will be even more suspicious if E. J. returns after four years and thus more likely to be arrested and tortured. As to the State party’s argument that the complainants have provided no evidence of past torture, the complainants contend that it is for the Committee to consider whether they will be subjected to torture upon return now and should thus be forward looking. 5.4 As to the State party’s view that there is no general need for protection of asylum seekers from Azerbaijan, the complainants submit that they never made this claim, but rely on their argument that E. J. is currently personally at risk. They question whether the Swedish migration authorities apply 5 The complainants refer to studies carried out by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development) and GRECO (Group of States against Corruption of the Council of Europe) to demonstrate their argument on the level of corruption in Azerbaijan.