21 April 2020, 19:53
Defence points to political context of Yagublu's arrest
A court in Baku refused to satisfy the defence's complaint against the arrest of the oppositional politician, Tofig Yagublu. The activist himself said that his arrest was preceded by his publications criticizing the authorities.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Tofig Yagublu, a member of the "Musavat" Party and of the coordinating centre of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF), was detained on March 22. His daughter told that when he was in his parked car, another car drove into him; and people from that car began behaving aggressively. After that, Yagublu was detained. The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) stated that he had committed a road accident and then attacked a married couple; therefore, he was detained. In his turn, Tofig asserts that he has become a victim of provocation.
The human rights organizations Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International have condemned Yagublu's arrest. The Council of Europe has also reacted to his arrest after the Azerbaijani President, Ilham Aliev, suggested to "isolate" the opposition as part of measures against the coronavirus.
"Tofig Yagublu stated in court that his arrest had to do with his exercise of the freedom of expression. In particular, he believes that he was arrested for his critical Facebook posts," Elchin Sadygov, an advocate, asserts.
Nemat Kerimli, another Yagublu's advocate, pointed to investigators' bias.
He explained, "The police have seized Yagublu's mobile phone and wouldn't return it. Yagublu had recorded to his phone how, after the road accident, he was attacked by the man, who was later recognized to be a victim."
Nigyar Khazi, a Tofig's daughter, treats the criminal case as "an unashamed provocation."
According to her story, after the arrest, the family members have been never allowed to visit Tofig. Because of the measures against coronavirus, inmates are not allowed to receive food parcels and other essentials. Besides, the daughter pointed to her father's health problems – he suffers from asthma.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on April 20, 2020 at 10:20 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Faik Medjid Source: CK correspondent
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