Appeals Court Rejects Ulvi Hasanli's Complaint of Inhumane Treatment

On November 15, the Baku Appeals Court heard the complaint filed by Ulvi Hasanli, the director of the Abzas Mediapublication, against Baku's pre-trial detention center -1 detention facility and the Penitentiary Service. The complaint concerns poor conditions of detention, inhumane treatment, and restrictions on Hasanli’s rights while in custody. Representatives from both institutions failed to appear in court.

Hasanli told the court that he is not allowed to see his young child. During visits with his wife, he said, 5-6 guards stand near the glass partition and eavesdrop on their conversation. "Our phone calls are monitored, and they don’t even allow calls to my lawyer. In the summer, when the heat was unbearable, they didn’t even open the windows," Hasanli explained.

He also claimed that after he exposed illegal practices at the detention facility - ones he had witnessed - an officer from the Penitentiary Service named Naib struck him on the back, causing bodily harm. Despite the threats to his life, Hasanli said he would continue to raise awareness about the violations in the detention center.

"In the pre-trial detention center  water is provided only twice a day. In our block, prisoners are tortured, and we can hear their screams and moans," Hasanli added. However, the court rejected Hasanli's complaint.

*Ulvi Hasanli is one of six journalists arrested between November 2023 and January 2024 in connection with the Abzas Media case. Economist Farid Mehralizadeh was later arrested in connection with the same case.

Initially, all of them were charged under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code (smuggling by a group of people acting in conspiracy). However, from August 16-19, the charges were upgraded to include Article 192.3.2 (illegal entrepreneurship with substantial profits), Articles 193-1.3.1 and 193-1.3.2 (money laundering by an organized group), Article 206.4 (smuggling by an organized group), Articles 320.1 and 320.2 (forgery and use of forged documents), and Article 213.2.1 (group evasion of taxes). These charges provide for prison sentences of up to 12 years. The journalists deny all accusations.