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OSCE urges Azerbaijan to release blogger Mehman Huseynov

OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović and Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), Michael Georg Link condemned the sentencing of Azerbaijani blogger and chair of the media NGO Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety Mehman Huseynov and called on authorities to release him, News.am reports, referring to contact.az .

OSCE urges Azerbaijan to release blogger Mehman Huseynov

OSCE urges Azerbaijan to release blogger Mehman Huseynov

STEPANAKERT, MARCH 7, ARTSAKHPRESS: “I call on the authorities to release Mehman Huseynov,” Mijatović said. “I am hopeful that this decision will be overturned in the appeals process.”

Mijatović reiterated her call that authorities fulfil their longstanding promise to decriminalize defamation in Azerbaijan.

In turn, ODIHR Director Link noted: “Any allegations or reports of torture or other ill-treatment should be promptly and thoroughly investigated by the relevant authorities. The court’s decision in this case is cause for concern.”

It should be noted that on 3 March Huseynov was sentenced by the court in Baku to two years in prison on defamation charges. The case stems from Huseynov’s detention by police on 9 January. Following the detention, the blogger claimed he had been subjected to torture. Despite existence of traces of violence on the blogger's body the prosecutor's office refused to bring criminal case upon tortures.


     

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