In London, AI holds protest action in defence of Azerbaijani oppositionist

The Supreme Court of Azerbaijan appointed on October 29 the consideration of the appeal of Jabbar Savalan, a member of the youth organization "Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan" (PFPA), an active user of social networks. This was reported by his lawyer Anar Gasymov.

According to his story, the first instance court considered the case in a prejudged way, and the court of appeal "actually duplicated the previous verdict".

Let us remind you that the appeal was lodged in connection with conviction of Savalan on May 4 by the Sumgait City Court, which sentenced the activist to 2.5 years of imprisonment on charges of illegal keeping of drugs. On July 26, the Baku Court of Appeal upheld the verdict. Jabbar Savalan was detained on February 5. According to police information, he was seized 0.17 grams of opium. Savalan rejects the accusations and claims that the drugs had been planted to him.

In anticipation of the consideration of the case against Savalan by the Supreme Court, the international human rights organization Amnesty International (AI) held a rally in London to protect the rights of the Azerbaijani activist. The rally was attended by famous British artists and designers. This is reported by the press release of the organization, which was received by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The participants of the protest action handed over to the Embassy of Azerbaijan a huge postcard with their signatures. Artists Sue Webster and Arun Nayar, Richard Hughes, a member of the rock band "Keane", designer Patrick Cox and other celebrities signed at the postcard.

They named Jabbar Savalan "a prisoner of conscience" and stated that they treated charges against him as fabricated.

The AI is concerned that "the official Baku resorted to accusations of drug keeping not for the first time".

"If someone tries to oppose the authorities in Azerbaijan, this person will be certainly punished. Savalan is a victim of such punishment, since he expressed criticism. This is an open violation of human rights, and Savalan should be released immediately. No one can be prosecuted or arrested for expressing his or her attitude. Therefore, we are pleased with the participation of so many British celebrities at the rally in support of Jabbar Savalan," said Kate Allen, the director of the AI representative office.

However, the Azerbaijani authorities reject the political background in the case against Jabbar Savalan and claim that he was convicted on charges of committing a crime.