Opposition Demands Blogger�s Release

Baku / 03/01/19 / Turan: Opposition forces condemned the new criminal charge launched against the blogger Mehman Huseynov two months before his release

The National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF) demanded the release of Huseynov and other political prisoners, and called to "put an end to the practice of initiating new criminal cases against innocent people already in prison."

"The initiation of a criminal case against Mehman Huseynov is not the first case. The authority of Ilham Aliyev lays the tradition of bringing new trumped-up charges and re-condemning political prisoners on the eve of the completion of their terms of imprisonment. Before Mehman Huseynov, the same took place with Ali Insanov, Mammad Ibrahim and Telman Shiraliyev," the NCDF statement said.

The structure believes that the initiation of a new criminal case against Huseynov is due to the fact that he was not broken.

"Currently, Mehman Huseynov is under pressure to commit himself to no longer engage in blogger activity after his release. And Mehman Huseynov refuses this. The ruling regime does not want to forgive Mehman Huseynov for his corruption exposures. The authorities are even angrier with Mehman Huseynov because he blamed the political regime for the death of his mother, "the statement further said.

The NCDF calls upon the international community not to remain indifferent to the new repressions of the Azerbaijani authorities and to put concrete measures of pressure on the regime, including targeted sanctions.

TheMovement for Democracy and Prosperity blamed the blogger"s health on the Azerbaijani authorities. The movement called on the authorities to drop the fictional accusation of the blogger and release him.

The Musavat party also demanded an end to lawlessness against the blogger. "The Musavat Party demands the political authorities respect the Constitution and the laws of the country and the fundamental rights and freedoms, and to immediately release Mehman Huseynov and other political prisoners," the statement said.

The leader of the PFPA, Ali Kerimli, called on the society to demonstrate solidarity and to resolutely demand the release of Mehman Huseynov and other political prisoners by the regime.

* Mehman Huseynov was arrested in March 2017 and sentenced to 2 years in prison under a libel suit filed by the head of the Nasimi police.

On December 26, he was charged with a new charge of beating a prison employee and placed in a punishment cell. In protest, he went on a dry hunger strike. On December 30, the blogger"s health worsened dramatically, and he swooned. After that, at the insistence of his relatives, he stopped the dry hunger strike and began to take water.

Human rights activists are convinced that Huseynov is being persecuted for exposing corruption among high-ranking officials, as well as criticizing the authorities. -06B ---