The anniversary of the death of journalist Rasim Aliyev

On 9 August the  Azerbaijani public marked the  anniversary of the death of journalist Rasim Aliyev beaten by the fans the captain of the football club "Gabala" Javid Huseynov.  Memorial ceremony began in a house on the outskirts of Baku with participation of the friends and colleague, who  remembered those who died and suffered for freedom of expression in Azerbaijan.

A year ago Rasim Aliyev was buried  in the cemetery near the village of Mammadli, and close relatives and civil society representatives came to honor his memory.

A prayer called  Rasim "a martyr of freedom of speech" an compared his  with the dead journalists - Elmar Huseynov and Rafiq Tagi, who  gave their lives for the ideals of freedom.

In their speeches, the head of the "Center for strategic thought," Isa Gambar, and the head of the Musavat party Arif Hajili noted Rasim’s high achievements in the protection of freedom of speech in Azerbaijan.

"This murder is politically motivated," Gambar said, noting that the independent press is constantly under the gun  of the regime. Hajili  expressed confidence that the regime  that  systematically persecutes journalists is doomed to failure. "The day is near when the country and the people freed from the dictates of authoritarian rule, he said.

Director of Turan news agency Mehman Aliyev said that the death of  such a journalist as Rasim  is  a big loss for the independent Azerbaijani press, since its range is very limited. " There are many journalists in Azerbaijan, but the number of  independent journalists is very little," he said, noting that the development of social and mobile journalism is growing in spite of pressure from the authorities.

As an example of the true attitude of the state towards the independent press Aliyev cited the absence representatives of the presidential administration, the Press Council and the so-called journalistic organizations at the ceremony.

He called immoral the statement by the President of the football club "Gabala" Tale Heydarov, who dedicated his team's victory over the French "Lisle" to  Javid Huseynov. "Just  the moral atmosphere in the club and around  have caused the murder of Rasim," Aliyev said.

Mammadali Aliyev,  father of Rasim, thanked all those who morally supported the family in difficult times: "I wish you all the best, and I ask  Allah to ward you from the tragedy that befell our family."

Rasim Aliyev was beaten on 8 August 2015, and the next day he died in hospital. Defendants in the case of his death were six people, including the footballer Javid Huseynov. The Huseynov case was turned into a separate proceeding and considered in the Sabail District Court of Baku. On May 31 Sabail District Court of Baku admitted him guilty under articles 307.1 (Not informing about the known preparation or arrangement of grave or especially grave crime) and 307.2 (Not promised concealment of serious crime) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan and sentenced him to four years in prison.  Five other defendants were found guilty of beating Aliyev, which caused his death, and received lengthy prison sentences. The murder of the journalist was caused by his critical report about Huseynov.-0—