Why is not Saleh Rustamov released?

Baku/19.11.21/Turan: A group of leaders of NGOs and the media, human rights activists appealed to the president in connection with the decision of the Baku Grave Crimes Court, which on February 27  sentenced the former head of the Gadabay region, now a citizen of Russia Saleh Rustamov, to 7 years and 3 months in prison.

Saleh Rustamov, an active participant in the movement for the independence of Azerbaijan, a participant in the first Karabakh war, who played a special role in the liberation of the village of Bashkand, was detained on May 8, 2018 on charges of drug possession. Later it became known that the charge had changed. According to the official statement on the detention, Rustamov is charged with money laundering. He himself does not admit the accusation and considers them politically motivated, and in this regard, announced a hunger strike on November 6. Rustamov has been on hunger strike for 14 days and this has already caused a deterioration in his health.

His lawyer Bahruz Bayramov tells about the state of the prisoner in the "Difficult Question" program.

According to him, he saw his client on November 18 at about 4 p.m. His  health is critical, he has lost 11-12 kg in weight, can hardly move, ulcers have formed on the gums, problems with the kidneys have appeared, at night (unclear).

Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross visited. They examined him. He only drinks water, and even then, in small quantities. Therefore, they regarded his hunger strike as dry.

Bahruz Bayramov noted that he and his client have friendly relations and therefore he knows Rustamov well enough. And if he decided to start a hunger strike, he will certainly bring it to the end.

According to him, representatives of the Russian embassy were present at the court hearings in the Saleh Rustamov case. Also, they were attended by representatives of Russian NGOs and the media, this process was covered in the Russian press. However, to all appearances, Russia does not intend to defend its citizen.

The lawyer said that Saleh Rustamov did indeed provide material assistance to the families of his fellow party members who were in custody.

“But this help was not very significant. From time to time  he sent 500-800 dollars. But he was unable to send $ 424,000, according to the prosecution. In general, Rustamov had a small business. And we received all the necessary certificates from the tax authorities of Russia - he accurately paid taxes. So, money laundering was out of the question,” Bayramov said.—0—