22 Jun 2012 | Azerbaijan News, Europe and Central Asia, Index Index, minipost
An Azerbaijani journalist was arrested yesterday on charges of illegal possession of drugs. Hilal Mamedov, a member of the Talysh ethnic minority, is the editor-in-chief of Talysh language newspaper Tolishi Sado (Voice of Talysh). A Baku court announced a three-month pretrial detention for the journalist, who was kidnapped and detained without explanation according to family members. The arrest comes shortly after the journalist made a popular anti-Putin video.
14 Jun 2012 | Azerbaijan News, Europe and Central Asia, Index Index, minipost
On the evening of 13 June, Azerbaijani photojournalist Mehman Huseynov was released after being detained the previous day. He was arrested after being accused of insulting policemen and charged with “hooliganism”, a regular tactic used by Azerbaijani authorities to silence critical voices in the country. Huseynov’s arrest, together with the sentencing of Anar Bayramli on 11 June and the arrest of other political activists, has widely been seen as part of a renewed clampdown on freedom of expression following the Eurovision Song Contest on 26 May. The charges against Huseynov remain.
To sign Index on Censorship’s petition to support free expression in Azerbaijan, click here
12 Jun 2012 | Azerbaijan News, Europe and Central Asia, Index Index, minipost
A journalist and government critic has been sentenced to two years in prison in Azerbaijan. Anar Bayramli, a correspondent for two Iranian media outlets, was sentenced for a drug possession charge following a controversial court case which was said to include contradictory evidence. Bayramli was arrested in February and charged with possession of four grams of heroin. The journalist was previously summoned by police on a number of occasions to disclose his political affiliation. The sentencing comes at a time when tensions between Azerbaijan and neighbouring Iran are particularly heightened.
6 Jun 2012 | Azerbaijan News, Europe and Central Asia, Index Index, minipost
An Azerbaijani blogger who had spent 15 months in prison for criticising the government was granted an early release by the supreme court on Monday. Bakhtiyar Hajiyev was arrested in March 2011 after calling on social networks for an anti-government protest, but was convicted and sentenced on a charge of evading military service. He will not be able to travel abroad without special permission for another nine months, until the period of his two-year jail sentence is over.
