The Human Rights House Foundation (HRHF) and Norwegian PEN condemn the alleged threats and beating by Azeri police of the human rights defender Emin Huseynov, chair of International Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS), Saturday 14 June 2008. HRH F has worked with Emin Huseynov and IRFS since 2005. IRFS is a well known and professional organisation in Azerbaijan working for freedom of expression and the protection of journalists.  

The violations followed in the wake of the police´s breaking up of a marking of Che Guevara´s 80th birthday in the Alaturka Cafe in Baku. According to the IRFS and the Institute of Peace and Democracy, the police officers detained 20 of 25 participants without identifying themselves or stating the reason for the detention and brought them to the Nasimi District Police Department #22. Among the detained were the “Yeni Musavat” Newspaper correspondent Elshan Balakhanli, and the Chairman of the Institute for Reporters´ Freedom Emin Huseynov, and the researchers Rasim Aliyev and Mirrehim Hasanov. According to Huseynov, the police twisted his arms, insulted and struck him on the back of his neck on the way to the police department.  

Without presenting any accusation against them, the police took photo and fingerprints of the unlawfully detained people. When Huseynov protested against this, the Chief Deputy of the Police department, Azer Karimzade, on the order of a man in civilian clothes, who was leading the raid, took Huseynov into a separate room. There he was subjected to physical and psychological pressure. Huseynov was threatened by the man in civilian clothes and struck on the back of his neck several times with a gun. After several minutes, Huseynov was taken out of the room and called colleagues waiting outside and told them that he had been subjected to physical and psychological pressure. The journalist Iddrak Abbasov observed that Huseynov had problems walking, and together with the present human rights defender Arzu Abdullaev, they asked the police to call an ambulance. Despite the urgent request, the police refused to call an ambulance. When the journalists called for rendering medical assistance to Emin Huseynov, who then had lost his consciousness, the doctors refused to come. The doctors did not accept calls from the police department that were not made by police officers.  

Finally Huseynov was taken to the Centralized Emergency Medical Assistance Hospital, after Huseynov´s colleagues outside managed to alert an ambulance without mentioning that the emergency was related to the event at the police station. Doctor Galib Ibrahimov  told IRFS that Huseynov had sustained head and brain trauma, but that his condition is stable. According to IRFS, Huseynov is being kept in the critical care department and has regained consciousness.  

The other detained people, including the journalists, were released after approximately seven hours. 

HRHF and Norwegian PEN regret the police’s use of  forced detention of participants of a peaceful event. We remind the Azerbaijani authorities to their obligation to respect freedom of assembly as established in article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and also in article 11 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

HRHF and Norwegian PEN condemn the forced detention, which contradicts to the Criminal Code of the Azerbaijan as well as to the Article 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights, which states that

“Everyone, who is arrested shall be informed promptly, […] of the reasons for his arrest and the charge against him.”  

HRHF and Norwegian PEN request that the police’s conduct, both during the arrests of the participants in the meeting in Alaturka Cafe, and during the interrogations at Nasimi District Police Department #22, will be thoroughly and independently investigated and that the findings of this investigation are made available to the public.  

We ask the Azerbaijani authorities to ensure that the deputy head major Azim Karimzade of the 22nd police department of the Nasimi District, and the other police officers are held directly responsible for their unlawful actions. Finally, HRHF and Norwegian PEN ask the authorities to give Emin Huseynov compensation, which he has an enforceable right to as a victim of detention, according to article 5 of the European Convention of Human Rights.

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