“If the cases of the arrested on charges of treason are not reviewed, then the “Terter case” will not be fully disclosed”

On May 24, relatives of the arrested in the "Terter case" held a protest action in front of the Prosecutor General's Office. They expressed dissatisfaction with the course of the re-investigation, the investigation of the facts of the use of torture against convicted and abused servicemen.

The protesters said that, despite the resumption of the investigation, most of the people involved in the falsification of cases, torture and murder have not yet been brought to justice. The families of the victims demanded that the perpetrators be punished.

The reasons for dissatisfaction with the course of the investigation, in an interview with ASTNA, were told by the father of Emil Aliyev, who was sentenced to 12 years in prison on charges of high treason, and Nasir Aliyev, a member of the Committee against Repression and Torture.

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Question: You, together with the relatives of the victims of the "Terter case", held a protest action in front of the Prosecutor General's Office on May 24 and expressed dissatisfaction with the course of the investigation. What caused your dissatisfaction?

Answer: There were several reasons that prompted family members of the victims and imprisoned servicemen to gather in front of the Prosecutor General's Office. The reason for our dissatisfaction, first of all, is the delay in work towards the release of servicemen who are imprisoned on false charges. In addition, despite the fact that more than 5 months have passed since the beginning of the investigation into the case of those who committed the crimes, only a small group and most of those arrested were of a low rank were arrested.

Question: After this protest action, you were invited to the Prosecutor General's Office. Who did you meet, what demands did you make and what were you told?

Answer: After the protest action, we met with the head of the investigation on the newly opened case, Gasim Mammadov. All the victims and family members of those arrested who were present at this reception privately expressed their opinions and comments, as well as objections. First of all, the steps taken towards the release of prisoners were discussed. Gasim Mammadov said that this is a long procedure and shared with us information about the steps taken in this direction. The second was the question of the reasons for delaying the arrest of those who committed the crime. Gasim Mammadov provided some information about the work carried out in the direction of strengthening the evidence base. The third question concerned measures to be taken to improve the material and physical condition of the victims. The fourth issue was bringing to the attention of the Prosecutor General Kamran Aliyev the demand to dismiss of military prosecutor Khanlar Veliyev, Deputy military Prosecutor Shafayat Imranov, as well as the investigators who conducted this investigation.

Question: You say that you are dissatisfied with the course of the investigation. But at the same time, we see that some processes are going on. For example, last month, according to official information, appeals filed in 16 criminal cases against 16 people convicted in the "Terter case" were satisfied and the corresponding sentences were canceled. Appeals were submitted to the courts in 10 criminal cases against 10 people. One person was acquitted posthumously. A total of 397 victims were identified. Seven people were arrested,  and one was put on the international wanted list. Some work is going on. Would this have been possible if the work had not been going on?

Answer: Yes, the investigation has done and continues to do a lot of work. To date, according to official information, 397 servicemen have been recognized as victims, 16 cases have been dismissed, and 10 cases have been appealed for their complete termination. Elchin Guliyev was also acquitted. Of course, in general, we assess this positively. However, we cannot but be concerned that not a single case concerning long-term prisoners has been canceled, and also that a similar case that occurred in 2017 in the Shamkir corps is not being investigated. We demand a review of the case of all those arrested in 2017 on charges of treason. Otherwise, only a part of the false charges brought by the military prosecutor's office will be revealed. And this will deal a serious blow to our statehood and army.

Question: They say that the number of victims in this case exceeds a thousand people. However, in the official data, 117 victims were indicated at the beginning, and then 397. If this information is true, why do the victims not want to declare themselves?

Answer: Our research allows us to assert that the number of victims, which eyewitnesses speak of, is about 2,000 people. One of the main reasons that the number of victims is 400 people is that they are back in the military, and also that those who remain silent are still skeptical about the objective conduct of this case, and some still cannot overcome fear. The investigation continues. New names will appear in this list of victims.

Question: Is there any pressure on the victims who testified to the investigation?

Answer: There are such cases. Vagif Abdullayev was arrested for 15 days on false charges of drugs, Nemat Maharramov was suspended from work without a good reason, Ruslan Farzaliev is wanted by people in civilian clothes. Many of us have been called to the police departments and so on.

Question: What steps should be taken for a full, objective investigation of the "Terter case"?

Answer: As you know, this case is called "Terter" conditionally. It covers the Beylagan, Barda and Shamkir buildings. First of all, for the duration of the investigation, the commanders of these corps, Khanlar Veliyev, Shafayat Imranov, as well as all employees of the Ministry of Defense involved in this case, should be removed from their posts. Only in this case, the credibility of the investigation will increase, and the victims, who remain silent, will finally turn to the investigation.