About two hundred people came to court to support the participants of the oppositional meeting of April, 2

On August, 9, hearing on the merits of a case against four activists arrested in connection with the meeting of April, 2, in the center of the capital of Azerbaijan, started in Nasimi district court of Baku under the chairmanship of judge Shakhin Abdullaev. The session passed off under tight security for the reason of arrival of about two hundred people from a group of the defendants’ public support.

Ulvi Guliev (nonpartisan), Elnur Mejidli (member of the youth branch of Azerbaijani Popular Front Party), Rufat Gajibeili (activist of “Musavat” party) and Ahad Mamedli (Deputy Chairman of the youth branch of “Musavat” party) were brought before the court. Famous lawyers Osman Kiazimov, Yalchin Imanov, Elchin Namazov and Khalid Bagirov are acting as their attorneys.

During the session the judge granted only two motions. In particular, he allowed the defendants to come out of their iron cages and take seats beside their attorneys during the trial and let Gajibeili go through medical examination.

The attorneys emphasized that the term of arrest of Mejidli elapsed on August, 8, and Mamedli’s term was up on August, 9, and for this reason they solicited to release their clients from custody. The judge did not grant these motions, neither did he prolong the term of arrest. Mejidli’s attorney Imanov estimated it as a gross violation of the law and Azerbaijan’s international obligations. The judge’s reasons were that as the investigation had started there was no need of a special permission for prolongation of preventive punishment.

Defendants Mejidli and Gajibeili declared that the essence of the charge was incomprehensible to them. They consider that the motive of the accusation is a political one. After discussing procedural questions judge Abdullaev fixed the date of the next session on 11:00, August, 16.