Center for Monitoring Political Prisoners (CMPP) accuses the law enforcers of torturing citizens

Baku / 28.08.18 / Turan: The situation in Azerbaijan with human rights is depressing and continues to deteriorate. Despite the government's promises to carry out reforms, a massive violation of the rights of citizens continues, according to the report of the Center for Monitoring Political Prisoners (CMPP). Most of all, human rights are violated by law enforcement agencies, which often exert physical pressure and torture. Impunity for such acts encourages new lawlessness, the study notes. The report provides specific facts of torture of detainees and convicts at temporary detention facilities, pre-trial detention centers and colonies of the Penitentiary System. In particular, the Center points to the case of Saleh Rustamli, former head of the Gedabay region, detained on 8 May on charges of drug trafficking. Within 14 days, his family members could not receive information about the place of his detention. He was not even brought to the appellate court for the consideration of the complaint. All this increased the suspicion that he was tortured.

The same fate faced his nephew - Vidadi Rustamov. They were both kept for more than two weeks in the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime (MDCOC) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, called the "place of torture", although by law they had to be transferred to the pre-trial detention center.

Only on May 25 the authorities reported that Saleh Rustamli and Vidadi Rustamov were involved in the "money laundering" case, which also involved three activists of the Popular Front party Babek Hasanov, Agil Maharramov and Ruslan Nasirli. According to relatives, activists were subjected to physical pressure and three months after their arrest, they still do not allow meetings with relatives. Torture is also brought against the defendants in the Ganja events, the report says. At the same time, attention is drawn to the publication in the social networks of a photo of the disfigured beating of Yunis Safarov - the accused in the attempt on the head of Ganja Elmar Veliyev.

Despite the statements of Safarov's wife and sister that he attacked Veliyev on the basis of personal conflict, the law enforcement authorities regarded this as a terrorist act and launched repressions against believers throughout the country.

In connection with the events in Ganja, law enforcers killed five people without trial and investigation. CMPP points out that killing people without proving their guilt does not serve as a fair trial and is a violation of the rights of the accused. In particular, it points out the violation of the presumption of innocence, since people without a court decision were declared "terrorists". Practically all the detainees had no lawyers and they were tortured. In addition, there is no evidence that all 5 liquidated persons resisted the law enforcers. In its study, CMPP also points out that no measures have been taken in connection with the violation of the rights of convicts. Only 5% of the funds allocated for the maintenance of prisoners reaches the goal. They do not receive proper food, clothing, medicines, or bedding. In addition, rations for the severely ill are also issued for money.

In jail N 5, where patients with tuberculosis are kept, medicines are released into debt for those who has no money; if they do not pay debt in time they can be beaten or imprisoned in a punishment cell. The CCMP strongly condemned the fact that the blogger Mehman Huseynov was not allowed to see his dying mother. "Prisoners of conscience" are subjected to pressure, Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov, the theologian Abgul Suleymanov. CMPP sees violations of the Article 2 (right to life), 3 (prohibition of torture), 6 (right to a fair trial), 13 (right to effective legal remedies), etc. The CMPP calls on the authorities to ensure respect for the rule of law and respect for the rights of citizens guaranteed by the Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights.

* CMPP was established in October 2014 by a group of former "prisoners of conscience". The organization's chairman is human rights defender Elshan Hasanov. -06B-