Azerbaijani rights defenders urge to transfer Mamed from colony to hospital

The verdict of the Azerbaijani journalist and human rights defender, Elchin Mamed, has been appealed against at the Supreme Court (SC). Rights defenders have also appealed to the Azerbaijan Ministry of Justice (MoJ) with a demand to transfer Mamed to a medical institution of the Penitentiary Service – a subordinate to the MoJ.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on October 16, 2020, the Sumgait City Court found Elchin Mamed guilty of theft and illegal possession of weapons and sentenced him to four years in prison.

Fariz Namazly, a Mamed's advocate, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that in late February, after the decision of the Baku Court of Appeal (BCA), his client was transferred to a penitentiary institution (Colony No. 14) located in the village of Gyzyldash, about 30 km to the west of Baku.

"The colony was built in the middle of the 20th century and fails to meet the standards of the Council of Europe. Elchin Mamed's health condition has deteriorated there; he already suffers from hepatitis C; now his legs got swollen; and he began coughing badly," Mr Namazly has stated.

The advocate has also reported that in late February he filed a cassation appeal against the decision of the Sumgait Court of Appeal. "According to the law, the consideration should have been scheduled within 3 months," Fariz Namazly said, noting that the defence is demanding to acquit Mamed.

On March 29, the Monitoring Group of Human Rights Organizations of Azerbaijan (MGHROA) applied to the MoJ asking to transfer Elchin Mamed to a medical institution of the Penitentiary Service.

"We know Elchin Mamed as a journalist and human rights defender. We treat him as a political prisoner and believe that he should be released. And prior to release, due to his health problems, he must be placed into the medical institution of the Penitentiary Service. On March 29, we turned to the MoJ with such a request," said Novella Djafaroglu, a member of the MGHROA and the head of the Society for the Protection of Women's Rights.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 31, 2021 at 10:16 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.