Public of Ukraine Speaks in Defense of Fikret Huseynli

Baku / 03/14/18 / Turan: Ukrainian public organizations have opposed the extradition of the journalist Fikret Huseynli to Azerbaijan.

They sent a relevant appeal to the General Prosecutor's Office of Ukraine demanding that the journalist's report be urgently completed and that he is given an opportunity to return unhindered to the Netherlands.

In Ukraine, this journalist faces a serious danger, because of attempts by unknown persons to kidnap him in Kiev on March 5, the address said.

The authors remind that there is a PACE resolution expressing concern about the threats that Fikrat Huseynli can expect in Baku.

They call on the Presidential Administration, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry to do everything to ensure the observance of Huseynli's rights and freedoms.

The petition was signed by the Institute of Mass Information, the Human Rights Platform, the Human Rights Information Center, the Detector Media, the Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law and Internews Ukraine.

Huseynli was detained on October 14, 2017 when flying from Kiev to Dusseldorf on the basis of Azerbaijan's request through Interpol. In Azerbaijan he is accused of fraud and illegal crossing of borders.

On October 18, 2017 Borispol City Court of Ukraine arrested him for 18 days to consider the issue of his extradition to Azerbaijan.

On October 27 Lukyanovka court of Kiev released Huseynli on bail of the deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Mikola Knyazhitsky and public figure Boris Zakharov. At the same time, the court rejected the state prosecutor's request to extradite Huseynli to Azerbaijan.

The Kiev prosecutor's office filed an appeal against the release of Huseynli, demanding his arrest.

The trial began on January 17, but was postponed four times.

Finally, on February 13 the court refused extradition. -06D