Policemen detain a participant of protest rally in Baku. Photo by Aziz Karimov for the Caucasian Knot

28 May 2020, 12:38

AI calls on Azerbaijani authorities to release activists

Azerbaijani authorities are using the restrictions imposed due to the pandemic in order to prosecute their opponents, the Amnesty International (AI) stated on May 27, demanding to release the arrested activists.

"Amid the growing fears about the COVID-19 spread in Azerbaijani prisons, the country's authorities are not only considering the release of prisoners convicted for political reasons, but, on the contrary, under the pretext of combating the pandemic, are putting more and more critics behind bars," says the AI's statement posted on May 27 on its website (hereinafter, translated by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent).

The AI has called on the Azerbaijani authorities to observe the principle of non-discrimination in measures taken to reduce serious health risks in jails, and demanded that persons detained on politically motivated charges also benefit from COVID-19-related release measures.

Politically motivated persecutions are a long-standing problem in Azerbaijan, where the government is using the justice system as a tool of repressions aimed at silencing the dissent and imprison critics of the government on trumped-up charges, the AI has stated.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 28, 2020 at 08:34 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medzhid Source: CK correspondent

All news
НАСТОЯЩИЙ МАТЕРИАЛ (ИНФОРМАЦИЯ) ПРОИЗВЕДЕН И РАСПРОСТРАНЕН ИНОСТРАННЫМ АГЕНТОМ ООО “МЕМО”, ЛИБО КАСАЕТСЯ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ ИНОСТРАННОГО АГЕНТА ООО “МЕМО”.

February 21, 2025 22:22

February 21, 2025 21:10

February 20, 2025 23:59

  • In Chechnya, sending to war is method to punish drivers

    Chechen law enforcers are monitoring social networks and reveal violators of traffic rules, who may face both public reprimand and sending to the special military operation (SMO) zone. The effect of talks with law enforcers is caused by fear of the consequences, human rights defenders have noted.

February 20, 2025 23:55

  • Zarema Musaeva's arrest extended

    A court in Grozny has extended Zarema Musaeva's arrest until March 26 under a criminal case on disrupting the work of a penal colony. Meanwhile, her sentence under the first criminal case was due to terminate on March 23, the "Team against Torture" (TaT)* has informed.

February 20, 2025 23:15

News archive
Пн
Вт
Ср
Чт
Пт
Сб
Вс
27
28
29
30
31
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
1
2