Azerbaijani CaT reports four deaths in custody from torture within year

Over 2014, the Azerbaijani Committee against Torture (CaT) received 112 complaints about acts of torture, inhuman and degrading treatment; four of these complaints were related to deaths of detainees, as Elchin Bekhbudov, the head of the CaT, said at a press conference, where the CaT's annual report was presented.

Mr Bekhbudov has noted that, as a rule, appeals about torture to state bodies bring no results.

"Usually, at the end of the inquiry, we receive answers that 'the facts were not confirmed.' However, in some cases, in particular, as it was in some bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), the perpetrators, although not formally prosecuted for torture, are subjected to disciplinary penalties," said Bekhbudov.

His biggest concern is about the situation at the Penitentiary Service of Azerbaijan.

"Since 2009, we have no access to this institution. However, we receive complaints from inmates' relatives. Unfortunately, we are not only deprived of the opportunity to conduct regular monitoring, but also to visit SIZOs (pre-trial prisons) and colonies to investigate individual complaints," said Bekhbudov.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that, according to last year's report of the Azerbaijani CaT, in 2013, at least five persons died from torture in the country. According to the CaT, most citizens, when answering the questions about the work of power agents with detainees, complain about the country's Penitentiary Service.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.