Human rights activists called for the release of political and "for life" prisoners

Baku/04.26.19/Turan: On Friday, the Union "For the Freedom of Political Prisoners" of Azerbaijan organized a hearing on the topic "Freedom to political prisoners, including those serving a life sentence." Union coordinator, human rights activist Elshan Hasanov expressed the opinion that the March presidential decree of Azerbaijan on pardon did not solve the problem of political prisoners, despite the release of about fifty of them. Even with the latest pardon, 87 political prisoners remain in prisons. Among them are people who are serving life sentences in the Gobustan prison, who have spent more than 20 years there. Many of them were convicted in connection with the activities of other persons. Thus, former Prime Minister Suret Huseynov has long been released, and his driver is still languishing in detention. Members of the Garangush military detachment who fought in Karabakh also remain in prisons, although they were involved in the case as accomplices. Hasanov believes that there are no legal ground to hold people in prison who were sentenced to death and after its abolition in 1998; the punishment was automatically replaced by the parliament for life imprisonment. For each person must be a judicial decision. At the time of the abolition of the death penalty in Azerbaijan in 1998, the number of those sentenced to death was 128. Of these, 30 have already died in prisons. Some went free. The rest have already served 20 years or more in prison. Many of them are sick, these people do not pose any danger to the state, Hasanov said. Leila Yunus, director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy, who is in political emigration in Europe, has joined the hearings through an Internet connection. She recalled that even when joining the Council of Europe in 2001, the government committed itself to review the case of life formers. However, so far this commitment has not been fulfilled. In conclusion, a statement was adopted which contained the requirements for the release of all political prisoners and persons serving life sentences from the above category, ensuring fundamental freedoms, ensuring fair justice, prohibiting torture, restoring the institution of citizen representation in courts by human rights activists, etc.-03C06-