01 April 2008, 12:53
Lady-human rights activist joins journalists' hunger strike in Azerbaijan
On March 31, Arzu Abdullaeva, co-chair of the International Helsinki Civil Assembly, expressed her solidarity with journalists in Azerbaijan by joining their protest hunger strike.
The human rights activist has called other members of the public to join the action. According to her version, for this purpose one should announce his or her accession to the action in mass media and to address the Public Committee in Defence of the Freedom of Speech.
Meanwhile, the hunger strike of mass media workers organized in the editorial board of the "Eni Musavat" newspaper with a demand to release all arrested journalists and political prisoners lasts for six days already.
We remind you that on March 26, imprisoned journalist Einullah Fatullaev started his hunger strike with a demand to free the convicted journalists. His demand was supported by journalists Shakhveled Chobanoglu and Zakhid Safaroglu who joined the hunger strike.
On March 29, the ranks of hunger-strikers were added by a group of political prisoners and journalists. Apart from general weakness, the participants of the hunger strike experience no health complications.
According to the list compiled by the Federation of Human Rights Organizations, Azerbaijan still has 65 political prisoners, including 10 "Karabakh guerrillas", from whose indictment the political motivation was excluded, and four journalists, three of whom have been recognized to be "prisoners of conscience" by the Amnesty International.
Author: Rafael Gasanov, CK correspondent
