24 December 2019, 23:55
Azerbaijani journalist denied removal of criminal record
Mustafa Gadjibeili, a journalist, has treated the court's refusal to cancel his criminal record, which impedes his running for parliament at elections in Azerbaijan, as political.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Gadjibeili had appealed to the court asking to remove his criminal record in order to be able to take part in the parliamentary elections. The hearing was postponed until December 24. Gadjibeili believes that the protraction will restrict his chances to participate in the election campaign.
Azerbaijani authorities have blocked the website "Bastainfo.com", where Mustafa Gadjibeili is the editor-in-chief, after publications about the attempt on the head of the city of Ganja. On November 30, 2018, Gadjibeili was accused of public appeals against the state, abuse of powers and service forgery. On February 21, a Baku court sentenced him to 5.5 years of conditional imprisonment.
"During the court session, I drew the court's attention to the fact that my criminal prosecution was unjustified. I was actually convicted for reprinting articles from other editions. Moreover, the content thereof was within the freedom of expression. Therefore, many international organizations have condemned the verdict," Mr Gadjibeili has stated.
Elshan Gasanov, the coordinator of the "Union for Freedom of Azerbaijani Political Prisoners", treats the court's ruling as "politically motivated." He has noted that there are precedents in the history of Azerbaijan, when on the eve of elections criminal records were remove from oppositionists, and they could take part therein.
Thus, at the 2005 parliamentary elections, a group of oppositionists managed to achieve the abolition of criminal records, took part in the elections; and some were even elected MPs.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 24, 2019 at 08:07 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Faik Medjid Source: CK correspondent
