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HRW CALLS ON AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES TO RELEASE HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER DEFENDING INTERESTS OF "VICTIMS OF EUROVISION"
18:32 05/03/2013 " SOCIETY
An Azerbaijan court on February 27, 2013, sentenced a human rights
lawyer, Bakhtiyar Mammadov, to eight years in prison on the basis
of a prosecution and conviction that appear politically motivated,
the Human Rights Watch says at its official site. The lawyer should
be released pending an independent investigation into the charges
and prosecution, Human Rights Watch said.
Mammadov represented several residents who were forcibly evicted
from their homes in the capital, Baku, which were demolished in
early 2012 as the government was building a performance hall for the
2012 Eurovision Song Contest. Mammadov's clients had challenged the
government compensation package, and Mammadov alleged corruption by
a high-level official involved in the compensation funds.
"This looks like yet another politically motivated prosecution
in Azerbaijan. The timing and context of the prosecution against
Bakhtiyar Mammadov certainly make it look like the authorities are
abusing the legal system for revenge." said Rachel Denber, deputy
Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch.
HRW reminds that in 2011, Mammadov represented three families who
challenged as inadequate the 10,000 AZN (US$12,700) in compensation
the government offered in exchange for their homes. In addition to
representing the families in court, Mammadov filed complaints on their
behalf with the prosecutor's office and the Anti-Corruption Committee
alleging, among other concerns, misappropriation of funds earmarked
as compensation for the evicted residents. Mammadov's clients were
among the 29 families evicted from the area, which was under the
jurisdiction of the Azerbaijani Navy. The area was adjacent the
construction site for the Baku Crystal Hall, the venue for the 2012
Eurovision Song Contest.
Mammadov alleged that two million AZN (US$2.5 million) had been
allocated from the state budget to compensate evicted residents, and
that as a result of the misappropriation of funds, evicted families
were being deprived of their fair compensation. His allegations were
published in newspapers affiliated with the Azerbaijani political
opposition.
"Mammadov was arrested on December 30, 2011, and has been in detention
ever since. He was charged with large-scale extortion (article 182.3.2
of Azerbaijan's criminal code) based on an allegation that he had
attempted to blackmail the person he had accused of misappropriation.
Mammadov was accused of threatening to expose documents implicating a
naval officer in misappropriation unless he paid Mammadov 18,000 AZN
(US$23,000); Mammadov has denied the accusation," the statement said.
Azerbaijani authorities made Mamedov to keep silence as Denber said.
Mammadov's wife and colleagues told Human Rights Watch that military
personnel had warned Mammadov in the summer and autumn of 2011 to
stop making the corruption allegations. One of Mammadov's relatives
was warned repeatedly that she could lose her government job unless
Mammadov stopped making the corruption allegations. The relative was
not fired, but was demoted without explanation, the HRW says.
Source: Panorama.am
From: Baghdasarian
18:32 05/03/2013 " SOCIETY
An Azerbaijan court on February 27, 2013, sentenced a human rights
lawyer, Bakhtiyar Mammadov, to eight years in prison on the basis
of a prosecution and conviction that appear politically motivated,
the Human Rights Watch says at its official site. The lawyer should
be released pending an independent investigation into the charges
and prosecution, Human Rights Watch said.
Mammadov represented several residents who were forcibly evicted
from their homes in the capital, Baku, which were demolished in
early 2012 as the government was building a performance hall for the
2012 Eurovision Song Contest. Mammadov's clients had challenged the
government compensation package, and Mammadov alleged corruption by
a high-level official involved in the compensation funds.
"This looks like yet another politically motivated prosecution
in Azerbaijan. The timing and context of the prosecution against
Bakhtiyar Mammadov certainly make it look like the authorities are
abusing the legal system for revenge." said Rachel Denber, deputy
Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch.
HRW reminds that in 2011, Mammadov represented three families who
challenged as inadequate the 10,000 AZN (US$12,700) in compensation
the government offered in exchange for their homes. In addition to
representing the families in court, Mammadov filed complaints on their
behalf with the prosecutor's office and the Anti-Corruption Committee
alleging, among other concerns, misappropriation of funds earmarked
as compensation for the evicted residents. Mammadov's clients were
among the 29 families evicted from the area, which was under the
jurisdiction of the Azerbaijani Navy. The area was adjacent the
construction site for the Baku Crystal Hall, the venue for the 2012
Eurovision Song Contest.
Mammadov alleged that two million AZN (US$2.5 million) had been
allocated from the state budget to compensate evicted residents, and
that as a result of the misappropriation of funds, evicted families
were being deprived of their fair compensation. His allegations were
published in newspapers affiliated with the Azerbaijani political
opposition.
"Mammadov was arrested on December 30, 2011, and has been in detention
ever since. He was charged with large-scale extortion (article 182.3.2
of Azerbaijan's criminal code) based on an allegation that he had
attempted to blackmail the person he had accused of misappropriation.
Mammadov was accused of threatening to expose documents implicating a
naval officer in misappropriation unless he paid Mammadov 18,000 AZN
(US$23,000); Mammadov has denied the accusation," the statement said.
Azerbaijani authorities made Mamedov to keep silence as Denber said.
Mammadov's wife and colleagues told Human Rights Watch that military
personnel had warned Mammadov in the summer and autumn of 2011 to
stop making the corruption allegations. One of Mammadov's relatives
was warned repeatedly that she could lose her government job unless
Mammadov stopped making the corruption allegations. The relative was
not fired, but was demoted without explanation, the HRW says.
Source: Panorama.am
From: Baghdasarian