Human rights activists asked the ECHR to award compensation for the dismissal of a police officer from Dagestan after criticizing corruption.
Lawyers of the CDHR «Memorial» submitted their explanations to the ECHR on the case of former police colonel Dagestan Saleh Hajiyev. In 2013, he was dismissed after remarks about corruption in the MIA system.
The complainants note that the European Court invited the Russian authorities to submit their own observations, but that they did not do so. In turn, the Hajiyev paper and lawyers list their comments and demand just compensation.
Deputy Head of the Department of Internal Affairs for Dagestan Salih Hajiyev participated in a press conference in 2013. He spoke of the need to combat corruption in the police and to introduce the principle of top management accountability. After that, his public activities were recognized as a gross violation of service discipline and he was dismissed.
As noted by human rights defenders, a public statement on corruption in the police is permissible under article 10 of the Human Rights Convention on freedom of expression. Hajiyev appealed the dismissal, but Russian courts at all levels refused to grant his complaints.
