Hilal Mammadov: "I was arrested for the clip "Who are you, let"s Goodbye"

Today at Baku  Serious Crimes Court continued the trial  in the case of Hilal Mammadov, the Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper "Tolyshi Sado".

In the beginning, the lawyers  spoke about the violation of  his rights to legal protection. Previously  Mammadov made the  same speech, when the judge Azer Orujov  interrupted his free readings.

After a half-hour meeting, the judge declared that the objections are not satisfied. Mammadov then continued his testimony and said that he was arrested  for placing on the Internet music video  "Who are you, let's Goodbye", which attracted attention abroad to the Talysh culture. He  was subject to pressure for organization the Talysh folklore evening in Astara, when the the crew of the Russian NTV channel was invited. "This is  good that I was arrested,  they even could kill me," said Mammadov. He noted that in 2007  he was questioned for  eight hours in the National Security Ministry  in the case of Novruzali Mammadov.

In general, according to Mammadov, after returning to Azerbaijan in 2005 (1993 Mammadov was in Russia)  he was constantly  under surveillance. Mammadov said that on June 21 last year, a few days after an evening of folklore in Astara, when he left the house,  he was attacked by  six or seven athletic looking people, who  forcibly put him into a car  and took his  to the Office to Fight Drugs. On the way to the Office he kept his hands in his pockets, and they also beat him. IN the Office they told that  Mammadov had drugs, two people witnessed it; but one of them refused to sign protocol saying that  Mammadov did not look as a drug addict. In the Office Mammadov was subject to physical pressure, and was tekn home to conduct a search. "When he saw on the table the Arab-Farsi dictionary and "History of Lankaran khanate", a police officer said pointedly, “You  have been arrested for this,"  said Mammadov. Then the police "found the drug" in the pocket of Mammadov’s jacket, hanging in the wardrobe.

Mammadov said that even if he  is planted  five tons of drugs, he  will not give up hi  civil position and  struggle.

The next hearing in the case will take place next Wednesday.

Mammadov was arrested on 21 June 2012 and charged with illegal possession of narcotics, treason and inciting ethnic hatred. However, local and international organizations believe that Mammadov  is persecuted for political reasons. —16C06—