The steps we will take regarding the “Tartar case” will either save us or destroy us.

Question: Arastun bey, a new investigation group has been established in the Prosecutor General's Office of Azerbaijan to investigate the "Tartar case". The press service of the Prosecutor General's Office did not comment on reports in a number of media outlets about the formation of a special investigation team to re-investigate the “Tartar case”, but later issued an official statement. Apparently, the local press could not spread this information on its own. Most likely, this information was leaked to the local media. In any case, where do you think the newly formed investigation team should start, and from whom?

Answer: I also had information beforehand that a group had been set up, and this was confirmed on one of the YouTube channels by the head of the delegation of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, MP Samad Seyidov. But leaking such information does not, in itself, indicate good intentions. Instead of officially disseminating official information about such an event, which has shaken the country for years, the country's investigation and law enforcement agencies leak information to the media, which further undermines their credibility. One of the main reasons for the Tartar massacre was the infamous joint statement of the country's four government bodies - the Prosecutor General's Office, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), and the State Security Service (SSS) - dated May 7, 2017. It was this statement that led to the atrocities committed in Tartar. Now the question is, “Why don’t the authorities, who were the authors of a statement that served to slander the country's military and led to the torture of thousands of our servicemen and the killing of at least 11 people, dare to issue a statement today?” There are two possible answers to this question: to present an issue of historical and vital importance to the people and statehood of Azerbaijan as an ordinary crime or to confuse public opinion about the "crime of the century", which has been in the public eye in recent months. Both are wrong and only exacerbate the social reaction by irritating society, deepening the mistrust between the state and society. Lack of transparency in the activities of government bodies was one of the reasons for the Tartar massacre. What can be said about the investigation, which is still not transparent today? As for whom to start the investigation, the law enforcement agencies know this better than anyone - first of all, from those who committed this crime and who made the decisions. But first of all, it should be disclosed under what articles the criminal case has been opened and who are included in the investigation group, of course, if such a group has already been created. According to the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Republic of Azerbaijan, an investigation group is established only after a decision to open a criminal case under any article.

Question: Do you think everything will be investigated objectively? Will the government be able to go into the full depth of this matter? Will it not take some people under its wing for the sake of their own interests, for the sake of common interests, or out of fear of someone or something?

Answer: Among the gang that committed the Tartar massacre were dozens of people who were close and distant relatives, each of whom was involved in the crime to one degree or another. Furthermore, most of those involved in the crime climbed the ladder in the prosecutor's office. Today, several of them hold positions that could influence the course of the investigation. Eight of them were appointed only by the current Prosecutor General, Kamran Aliyev, in the Prosecutor General's Office and the Military Prosecutor's Office. In this case, it does not seem convincing that the prosecutor's office, as you say, can go into the details of the case. In addition, there are numerous traces of foreign special services in the Tartar massacre. At least these two cases do not allow the investigation to be entrusted to the prosecutor's office. From this point of view, I think that the investigation into the Tartar massacre should be carried out either by the SSS and the MIA or by the MIA, or by the prosecutor's office after the dismissal of those from the prosecutor's office involved in the crime. Or what kind of objective investigation can we talk about when the Military Prosecutor, Khanlar Valiyev, one of the main organizers of the crime, is in office?! Let us not forget that Khanlar Valiyev is also the Deputy Prosecutor General; moreover, both he and Kamran Aliyev exceeded the confidence limit with their known statements about the crime committed in Tartar. Let me remind you that Khanlar Valiyev called the statements of hundreds of victims on this crime "a fairy tale", and Kamran Aliyev called these statements "absurd". But in any case, the investigation should be carried out only within the law, and I personally say that even if there is lawlessness against the perpetrators of such unimaginable crimes, I will be the first to publicize it and strongly protest against it. Because the Tartar massacre is not only a crime against people and humanity but also a very ugly act committed against the statehood, the people, the pride and dignity of the people. It must receive its full legal value so that we, as a state and a people, can return to the rule of law, the legal framework. The reason for all these crimes is that our country is out of the law, and the law is the only reliable support of the state. The investigation of the Tartar massacre should serve to restore this support. In my opinion, this should be one of the strategic goals, and perhaps the first.

Question: I did not ask the previous question for no reason. Because you also know that the names of very high-ranking people are mentioned in this issue. For example, the names of the current Military Prosecutor, Khanlar Valiyev, the Commander of the First Army Corps, Major General Hikmat Hasanov, the former Chief of General Staff, Najmaddin Sadigov, who is also known as a Russian spy, are mentioned. And it is emphasized that the Russian factor plays a role in this issue. Do you think that Russia will allow an objective investigation of this issue? Or will Azerbaijan be able to see or prevent this factor?

Answer: For more than 4 years, when I investigated the Tartar massacre, I constantly thought about these issues and spoke about them many times in my statements and interviews. Of course, not everything is as clear-cut as we think, but in our reality, it is enough to have the political will to punish any high-ranking person who has committed a crime. The law is the law only when it works for everyone. If a criminal who is under the protection of one state today goes unpunished, it could be a precedent for others in the future. Moreover, as I said, if it is a crime against the state and statehood, then a fairly principled position must be put forward. The impunity of those who committed crimes against the army at the behest of a foreign state may tempt some tomorrow to commit any crime against the political authorities or the state as a whole. Since these are fundamental issues for the people, the state, and the government, there can be no compromise on them.

Question: A day before this information, there were reports about the dismissal of Major General Mubariz Rzayev, Commander of the Third Army Corps of the Azerbaijani Army. There are opinions in the local press about his dismissal. Could Mubariz Rzayev's dismissal have anything to do with the “Tartar case”?

Answer: Although some victims stated that General Mubariz Rzayev was seen in the torture scene from time to time at the time of the crime, I did not find detailed information about his direct involvement in these cases. There are also opinions that his resignation is the result of intrigues within the Ministry of Defense. This version seems more plausible because although the former Chief of General Staff, Najmaddin Sadigov, who was constantly hostile to the Azerbaijani Army, was removed from office, his "nightmare" still lingers over this government body. When I say "nightmare", I mean Sadigov's criminal gang.

Question: The dissemination of this information comes after the participation of the President in the Brussels summit. Can any European official ask the President to investigate this issue? Because there are such versions as well.

Answer: MP Samad Seyidov said in the above-mentioned statement that the Tartar massacre has been discussed with the Council of Europe for a long time. I do not rule out that due to the fact that this crime has not been investigated for more than 4 years, there may have been some external influences on the Azerbaijani government. However, it is not clear why the Azerbaijani government is constantly prolonging the investigation of internal issues and promoting external influences. The investigation of the Tartar massacre and the elimination of its grave consequences should be primarily in the interests of the Azerbaijani state and government. It is no coincidence that I called this event a "crime of the century" because there has been no crime of this scale and brutality in Azerbaijan almost in the last hundred years. The steps we will take in connection with the Tartar massacre will either save us or destroy us.

Question: In June of this year, 24 members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe initiated an investigation into torture in Azerbaijan in the context of the "Tartar case" and the appointment of an assembly rapporteur for this purpose. What happened to this issue?

Answer: As far as I know, there have been talks with the Council of Europe about this, and the Azerbaijani government has promised that the crime will be investigated fairly. Now it is time to give promise to the people and keep both words. There is no alternative to this. The fact that the issue has not been out of the agenda for many months is a manifestation of the country's sensitive attitude to Tartar crime. As someone who has dedicated more than four years of his life to the investigation of this crime, I must say that the Tartar crime will either get its legal value or will continue to shake the country. While in Baku in 2018, I met two victims of that crime who had been subjected to horrific torture. At that time, people were afraid to meet and talk about what had happened to them. Hundreds of people today speak openly about it. 25 innocent servicemen who were sentenced to long-term imprisonment without any evidence or criminal facts are still in prison, dozens of children are growing up without fathers, dozens of families have been left without heads of family, dozens of families have been destroyed, the families of about 2,000 servicemen who have been unemployed have been living in poverty for years, and finally, the security and defense capabilities of the Azerbaijani state have been shaken, and people's trust in the state has been seriously damaged. Therefore, the perpetrators of the Tartar massacre, without exception, must receive their deserved punishment. Innocent people should be acquitted, those killed should be given the status of martyrs, and the victims and their families should be compensated. The parliament must adopt relevant documents in connection with the Tartar massacre and eliminate the insult to the people of Azerbaijan. Only in this case, the issue of the Tartar massacre, which is an embarrassing page of our history, may be closed. All this is something that we, Azerbaijani people, must do, not any foreign country or international organization.

Kamran Mahmudov