Journalists have obtained a pass to the trial of M.Orujev (updated)

Today, journalists still managed to get them to the trial in the Baku Court of Serious Crimes of trade union activist Mohiaddin Orujev accused in the drug case. The reporters went to the reception office of the court and demanded a meeting with the chairman of the court. An assistant to the chairman came out to them, after which the media representatives were allowed to enter the process. At the beginning of the meeting, lawyer Nazim Musayev challenged the composition of the court. He recalled that at the previous meeting, Orujev was held in handcuffs in the hall, despite the protests of the defense.

According to the precedent decisions of the European Court of Human Rights, keeping the accused in the courtroom during the trial in handcuffs is torture.  Since the court "turns a blind eye to torture," the lawyer challenged the composition of the court.  However, the challenge was not satisfied, but the handcuffs were removed from Orujev.

Further, the lawyer requested that the investigators' answers to the defense's petitions during the preliminary investigation be removed from the case materials, since no answers were received.  However, after the fact, the investigation's answers were included in the case, indicating that they were sent to the law office number 9.

The lawyer submitted a document from the bureau stating that no responses to the petitions had been received. In connection with the revealed falsification, the lawyer demanded the exclusion of these answers from the case file. However, the court did not grant the petition, scheduling a hearing on the merits for August 2.

*Orujev was arrested on December 13, 2023 on charges of large-scale drug trafficking (Article 234.4.3 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan). 

Earlier, in October 2023, he was administratively arrested for 30 days on charges of disobeying the police. After his release, Orujev stated that the real reason for his arrest was criticism of the authorities on social networks for violations of labor rights. He also complained of beatings and inhuman treatment by the police.

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Journalists are not allowed to open trials at the Baku Serious Crimes Court

The Baku Serious Crimes Court has stopped allowing journalists to attend trials. On July 30, journalists were again prevented from entering the hall where the trial of trade union activist Mohyaddin Orujev was taking place. Such a ban has already become systematic, because it has been observed for several weeks. The security staff of the court does not give explanations about the reasons for the ban. All this is a violation of the principle of openness of the court and violates the legitimate rights of journalists.