Eynulla Fattulayev returned to his home on 26 May. He has spoken on the phone to campaigners and journalists, saying he is “optimistic” about the future. He said he would like to continue working as a journalist.

“International community helped me”
Speaking to RFE/RL less than two hours after being freed, Fatullayev said he believes those efforts played a key role in the government’s decision to set him free.

“The activities of the international community helped me, of course,” he said.  “[First of all] I would like to say thank you to Amnesty International, because during the past four years it continued its complicated mission [to push] for my release.”

Fatullayev added that his unexpected freedom felt like “a miracle” that was difficult to understand.

“I’m still trying to [understand] the situation,” he said. “It’s a miracle for me. I couldn’t imagine it. It’s a real surprise for me.”

2007-2011 review
Below is an overview of Fatullayev’s case by freelance human rights consultant and expert on freedom of expression in Azerbaijan Rebecca Vincent followed by comments of human rights organisations hailing Fatullayev’s release.

“On April 2007 in a crowded Baku court room, investigative journalist Eynulla Fatullayev was sentenced to two-and-a-half years’ imprisonment for defamation. He was taken into detention on the spot. This was not the first time Eynulla was targeted for exercising his right to freedom of expression, and unfortunately, it would not be the last.

Eynulla’s conviction followed years of harassment and intimidation by the Azerbaijani authorities, including numerous civil and criminal defamation lawsuits. The persecution did not stop with Eynulla himself; his father has received numerous death threats and in October 20006 he was kidnapped and held hostage until Eynulla agreed to cease publishing his newspapers.

Over the next four years, following his conviction in April 2007, while the world moved on, Eynulla spent his life in a series of small, dank jail cells, waiting for justice.

Instead, his newspapers Realniy Azerbaijan and Gundelik Azerbaijan were effectively shut down in May 2007 when authorities closed their offices. In October 2007, Eynulla was convicted of another series of politically motivated charges – supporting terrorism, inciting ethnic hatred, and tax evasion – and was now saddled with a cumulative sentence of eight and a half years in prison.

Eynulla’s hopes were raised as the European Court of Human Rights considered his case. However, in anticipation of the judgment, in December 2009 prison officials claimed to have “found” heroin in Eynulla’s jail cell, a move widely believed to be politically motivated.

After the European Court ruled in April 2010 that Eynulla’s convictions constituted violations of his rights to freedom of expression and  to a fair trial and ordered his immediate release, the Azerbaijani authorities proceeded with the new charge of drugs possession. He was convicted in July 2010 and sentenced to another two and a half years in prison.

After the European Court’s judgment became final in October 2010, the Azerbaijani authorities engaged in a campaign of political manoeuvring at the Council of Europe, claiming that they had complied with the judgment and that Eynulla’s continued imprisonment was a separate, criminal matter which had nothing to do with his previous convictions.

The international human rights community and international experts disagreed, arguing the drugs possession conviction to be politically motivated and based on fabricated evidence, intended to keep Eynulla in prison despite the European Court’s judgment in his favour.

But finally, on 26 May 2011, just 12 days after Azerbaijan’s win in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest, Eynulla was released from prison. His name was included in a list of 90 prisoners granted a pardon by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev ahead of celebrations to mark the anniversary of the founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan.

In video footage at his home following his release, Eynulla said that he would like to continue working as a journalist, explaining that “for 12 years of my life I’ve been working as a journalist…I was working as a journalist while in prison.” Indeed, Eynulla has refused to be silenced and provides a rare critical voice in a media climate marked by self-censorship and domination by the state.

Although Eynulla is now free, Azerbaijan remains a dangerous place to express opinions critical of the government, and a climate of intimidation is pervasive. Jabbar Savalan, Bakhtiyar Hajiyev and others remain imprisoned for expressing critical opinions, and the cycle of violence against journalists and impunity for their attackers continues.

Eynulla’s release, however, is a step in the right direction. Let’s hope that it signals the start of the Azerbaijani authorities taking their international commitments to freedom of expression more seriously.”

Freedom of expression needed
Fatullayev’s case was part of a broader government campaign to restrict freedom of expression in Azerbaijan.

In recent weeks courts have convicted two social media activists for drug possession and draft evasion in what were clearly politically motivated prosecutions. Both youth activists had used Facebook and other social media to voice criticism of the authorities and call for public protests.

The government should prosecute instead violence or threats against reporters, which routinely go unpunished, Human Rights Watch says.

Efforts to release Fatullayev
Since his imprisonment, many international human rights and free speech organizations, including Human Rights House, have campaigned for Fatullayev’s release and for greater freedom of expression in Azerbaijan, have lobbied the Azerbaijani government on his behalf.

“This has been a long term international campaign.  We are proud to have worked side-by-side with Article 19, Index on Censorship, Amnesty International and the Media Diversity Institute. This release is proof that if we keep up the pressure on governments with a poor human rights record, they can be persuaded to do the right thing,” said Gillian Slovo, President of English PEN.

According to Robert Sharp, Campaigns Manager at English PEN, the organisation is delighted by this release, but it must herald the start of fundamental improvements to the law in Azerbaijan.

“The Government must guarantee everyone’s right to free speech, even if they express dissident views.  We are concerned that Azerbaijan’s proposed ‘cyber-crime’ laws could restrict debate, and we urge President Aliyev to rethink these proposals,” Sharp added.

Norwegian Helsinki Committee says “the case shows that pressure against the authorities work. The pressure must continue”.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), another group that had been campaigning on behalf of Fatullayev, described his release as “a victory against injustice.”

CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova called on Azerbaijani authorities to abide by their international press freedom commitments and refrain from jailing journalists in retaliation for their work.

Last protest against Fatullayev’s imprisonment
On 20 May a demonstration outside the Azerbaijani Embassy in Kensington London took place. 50 protesters wearing masks bearing the face of Fatullayev were protesting against his imprisonment and demanding his immediate release.

The demonstration was organised by English PEN, Amnesty International UK, Article 19, Index on Censorship and the Media Diversity Institute to mark four years since his arrest

Related articles:

Another Azerbaijani Facebook activist jailed for two years

Azeri activist sentenced to 2.5 years in jail, government stifles critics

Fifty Fatullayevs protested the continued detention of Azerbaijani journalist

Azerbaijan: Free speech activists call on journalist’s release

PACE must take action to address alarming freedom of expression situation in Azerbaijan

Fatullayev’s fate – in the hands of the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers

Azerbaijan: Human rights organisations demand to comply with European Court decision

Letters of concern:

Joint open letter to President of Azerbaijan re Eynulla Fatullayev’s case

Request for immediate and unconditional release of Eynulla Fatullayev

Request for immediate and unconditional release of Eynulla Emin Fatullayev