Azerbaijan: committee in defence of freedom believes new case against Fatullaev is far-fetched

On January 4, the office of the Azerbaijani National Committee of the Helsinki Civil Assembly hosted a sitting of the committee in defence of the freedom of speech dedicated to the new criminal case opened against the imprisoned journalist Einullah Fatullaev.

The committee passed an open appeal to international bodies urging to undertake sanctions against Azerbaijani officials "for their endless violations of the freedoms of speech and self-expression."

The document criticises the "contemplative" attitude of the western powers to violations of human rights in Azerbaijan and offers to announce 2010 "the year of solidarity of the international community with Azerbaijani NGOs."