Re-trial of Lamia Guliyeva Starts

Today at Baku Appeal Court a preparatory meeting was held on the case of Lamia Guliyeva, who was convicted twice while in prison and after giving birth to a child there.

Lamia Guliyeva in 2003 was sentenced to 10 years in prison for the murder of the son of the former chief executive of the Shamkir region Aslan Aslanov.

The real term ended in 2013. However, in 2012 Guliyeva was handed a new sentence - imprisonment for 5 years and 6 months under Article 317.2 (violation of the normal activity of penitentiary institutions or detention centers).

Thus, the general term for Guliyeva was 15.5 years.

Consideration of the appeal is held on the protest of the prosecution against the "excessively severe punishment" for Guliyeva.

Guliyeva was brought into the courtroom with the child. She said that she decided on the conception and the birth of the child was "forced".

"I have been in prison since I was 15 years old. I committed a crime, which had a cause. From adolescence my life is broken, that is why I was forced to do this," said Guliyeva.

She said that she asked the President, the society and the prosecutor to forgive her and release her from prison.

The lawyer Mehdiyev petitioned to release Guliyeva from custody and to consider the case with partial trial.

However, the court dismissed the petition and scheduled the consideration of the case for February 20.

Public attention to this matter was raised after the birth of a child by Guliyeva in custody became known. In the media there was an assumption that she was raped in revenge. Law enforcement authorities deny this, but they cannot clearly explain how an unmarried woman could give birth in isolation.

Intrigue to the case is brought by the possible retaliation by the father of Ruslan Aslanov, whom she killed. He is the former head of the Shamkir region and then Deputy Minister of Agriculture. -03S06-