In Azerbaijan, Mirabad Rzaev, activist of "Kura" office, sentenced conditionally

In the evening of September 18, in Azerbaijan, the Saatli District Court pronounced the decision to release Mirabad Rzaev, an activist of the headquarters of the public organization "Kura". The court sentenced the activist to 1.5 years of conditional imprisonment.

The "Caucasian Knot" reported that on July 13, Mirabad Rzaev and his son Mirsalekh Rzaev were detained in the building of the executive authorities of the Saatli District, where they came to file a complaint about the delayed period of repair of their house after the flooding of the Kura and Araz Rivers, which occurred in spring and summer of 2010. Mirabad Rzaev was charged under Article 315.1 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan (use of force against a representative of power), and on 16 July, he was arrested for two months.

On September 18, Mirabad Rzaev was released in the courtroom, and at present, he is at home. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent by Oktai Gyulalyev, the coordinator of the headquarters of the public organization "Kura".

"Of course, we do not agree with the verdict of guilty. We believe that Mirabad Rzaev s absolutely innocent. He only demanded to observe his rights. However, in any case, we are encouraged by his release from prison. Mirabad is free again, and he joined his family and relatives. On the other hand, we believe that his release is also a victory of the Azerbaijani public organization," said Oktai Gyulalyev.

According to him, the activists of the headquarters of the public organization "Kura" raised the issue of the release of Mirabad Rzaev at the meetings with representatives of the authorities and members of diplomatic missions and international organizations.

Oktai Gyulalyev believes that the criminal case against Mirabad Rzaev was fabricated. According to him, at the building of the executive authorities, Mirabad Rzaev has publicly criticized the head of the district. After that he and his son were invited to the reception of the assembly hall, and they were arrested there.

In their turn, investigators claim that Mirabad Rzaev tore a jacket of Siragaddin Djabarov, Chief of the executive authorities of the Saatli District of Azerbaijan.