Relatives of Turadj Zeinalov who died at MNS of Nakhichevan demand objective investigation into his death

In Azerbaijan, relatives of Turadj Zeinalov, who died in this August in the SIZO (pre-trial prison) of the Ministry of National Security (MNS) of the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic (NAR), believe that he died from torture and insist on an objective investigation into the case and punishment for the guilty persons. This was reported by father and wife of the deceased person at the press conference held on December 5 in Baku.

Let us remind you that relatives of Turadj Zeinalov reported that he was arrested on August 24 and died in four days from torture which he suffered at the Ministry of National Security (MNS) of the NAR. Officials of the institution admitted the death of the 31-year-old Turadj Zeinalov on August 28; however, they deny a violent nature of his death.

Zeinalov's relatives claim being threatened

At the press conference at the Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), Shuriya Zeinalov, the father of the deceased man, and Gulnar Agaeva, the widow of Turadj Zeinalov, declared that they were asking the leadership of Azerbaijan to ensure their safety, since, according to them, the MNS of the NAR put pressure upon them.

Shuriya Zeinalov said that his son Turadj Zeinalov, the resident of the village of Arazin of the Djulfain District of the NAR, worked as a driver in the Nakhichevan airport and was arrested on charges of collaboration with the Iranian secret services.

According to the father of the deceased man, on August 24, his son was detained and brought to the MNS of the NAR. On the other day, Shuriya Zeinalov and the widow of his son were invited to the MNS of the NAR, where they were told that Turadj had been accused of treason.

Shuriya Zeinalov stated that he and Gulnar Agaeva were proposed to persuade Turadj "to plead guilty and testify that he had actually committed some kind of actions under pressure," and, in that case, the detainee was promised to commute a sentence.

According Gulnar Agaeva, her husband refused to sign any documents and pleaded not guilty. "It was clear that Turadj was beaten. He could not move. He has got injuries to his head. When I asked what had happened to Turadj, the investigator said that 'they gave him two slaps to bring him to understanding.' However, just because of slaps, a man cannot lose his ability to move independently," stated Gulnar Agaeva.

On August 28, it became clear that Turadj Zeinalov had died. According to Shuriya Zeinalov, they managed to take the body of his son out of the MNS of the NAR only due to the efforts of local journalists and human rights defenders.

According to the medical report issued to his family members, Zeinalov died of "pulmonary arterial thrombus."

However, the press conference showed video of the deceased man's body, which proved obvious signs of violence, in particular, traces of a rope around the neck. The family members believe that Turadj was tortured with a plastic bag on his head, which was tightened around his neck. Besides, the entire body of the deceased man was covered with bruises. Different parts of the body showed shallow holes - evidence of torture with electric current.

Immediately after the death of Turadj, his family members claimed pressure upon them. The father and the widow of Zeinalov reported that they were forced to sign documents that they had no complaints about the investigators and that Turadj was allegedly diagnosed with cancer. According to the father of the deceased man, he has put his signature, since they promised to remove "a spot of the people's enemy" off his son. At the same time, the Zeinalov's relatives were under pressure to prevent their visit to the group of civil society activists who attended the NAR in September.

Later, having recovered after the grief, the Zeinalov's family members began to seek punishment for the guilty persons. In response, they were threatened. In particular, the family is threatened that they would plant drugs to the Turadj's brothers, hit his 6-year-old son with a car, and dismiss other relatives from the jobs, the Zeinalov's family members reported at the press conference.

The father and the widow of Turadj stated that he had not suffered from cancer, in contrast to the allegation of the MNS of the NAR. Moreover, a month before his death, he had passed a medical examination at his work, and no health problems had been discovered.

The father and the widow of the deceased man by means of media appealed to President Ilham Aliev and Vasif Talibov, the NAR's leader, asking to ensure the safety of the Zeinalov's family and punish the persons responsible for the Turadj's death.

They also hired the lawyer Asabali Mustafaev to protect their rights.

The family also demands to conduct an independent medical examination of the remains of the deceased man.

The father and the widow of Turadj Zeinalov are convinced of his innocence. They demonstrated the honour diploma which Turadj got for his excellent service in the army.

They emphasize that Turadj was the driver at the civilian airport, and he could not have any secret information to transmit to someone else.

Besides, the Turadj's family members urged to ensure safety of the Nakhichevan journalists and human rights defenders, since, according to the Zeinalov's relatives, due to their efforts the MNS of the NAR could not hush up the incident.

In her turn, Malakhat Nasibova, the head of the Resource Centre for NGOs and development of democracy in the NAR, has reported that in August, together with Turadj Zeinalov, other four technical employees of the Nakhichevan airport were arrested. Three of them were soon released, and one was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment on charges of treason.

Malakhat Nasibova also reported that she and other human rights defenders and journalists of the NAR were subjected to the pressure for the fact that they disclosed the case of Turadj Zeinalov. "An officer from the secret services called me 'a people's enemy'. Later, special people threatened us," stated Malakhat Nasibova.

MNS of Nakhichevan believes that Zeinalov worked for secret services of foreign states

The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has failed to obtain comments from the MNS of the NAR.

Earlier, following the distribution of the statement of the Zeinalov's relatives in the media that the young man died from torture, the MNS of the NAR issued a press release, which noted that Zeinalov died of cancer.

According to the MNS of the NAR, by orders of foreign secret services, Zeinalov collected and transmitted to them the information about military facilities in Nakhichevan.

Human rights defenders demand to stop torture in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijani human rights defenders strongly condemned the death of the young man in the SIZO of the MNS of the NAR. Thus, Novella Djafaroglu, the head of the "Committee for Women's Rights named after Dilara Alieva", urged the authorities of the country to put an end to such facts of inhuman treatment of prisoners. In September, a large group of the Azerbaijani civil society activists arrived to the NAR to investigate the human rights situation. However, the NAR officials refused to meet them and asked them to leave the territory of the autonomy.