In Azerbaijan, activists create committee to protect Rufat Safarov's rights

The public committee to protect the rights of Rufat Safarov, a former investigator of the Zardob District Prosecutor's Office, sentenced to 9 years of imprisonment on the charge of bribery, includes advocates, journalists, human rights defenders, and poets. This was reported by Eldaniz Guliev, the chair of the established committee.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 15, Rufat Safarov was arrested on the charge of repeated taking of a bribe. On August 8, he claimed political nature of his case.

Eldaniz Guliev, the chair of the committee, questions the originality of the charges.

Lawyer Namizad Safarov, another committee member, claims political nature of prosecution of the former investigator.

Advocate Bakhruz Bairamov has added that the verdict had been challenged.

At the Baku SIZO (pre-trial prison) No. 1, Rufat Safarov was placed to a cell without window glass, and it was not glazed, despite repeated requests. This was reported by Eldar Sabiroglu, the father of Rufat Safarov, one of the founders of the ruling party "Yeni Azerbaijan".

"He caught a bad cold, and he has still not completely recovered. This is in fact inhuman treatment," stated Eldar Sabiroglu.

According to officials from the PR Department of the Penitentiary Service, "at present, there are no problems with detention conditions in the Rufat Safarov's cell."

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