On 6 July 2010, Mr. Fatullayev was found guilty under article 234.1 of the Criminal Code and was sentenced to two years and six months in prison. We believe that the additional sentence is politically motivated and that the evidence, which was brought up in court, was fabricated. We call upon the Baku Appellate Court to overturn the sentence, and to comply with the decision of the European Court of Human Rights on 22 April 2010 regarding Mr. Fatullayev’s two previous convictions, which asked the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release Mr. Fatullayev.
On 22 April 2010, the European Court of Human Rights found that the convictions of Editor-in-chief Eynulla Fatullayev constituted a breach of Mr. Fatullayev’s rights under Article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights. Hence, the Court found Article 6 ¤ 1 and 2 of the Convention to have been violated. Under Article 46 of the Convention, the Court urged the Azerbaijani authorities to release the applicant immediately and compensate him for non-pecuniary damage and for the costs and expenses related to the trial.
The 42 organisations call upon the Azerbaijani authorities to take into account the appeals from the international community in this case and to take seriously their obligations as a Member State of the Council of Europe, including their commitment to respect the right to freedom of expression. They also call upon the Azerbaijani authorities to drop all charges against Eynulla Fatullayev and to comply fully with the European Court for Human Rights’ ruling, including by releasing Mr. Fatullayev immediately.
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