Rashad Rzakuliev

According to the World Information Access, 64 bloggers were arrested and convicted by results of the blogosphere study in the past five years.

Even “progressive” democracies including Canada, USA, France and Great Britain were among those resented over their bloggers. The average term of the convicted blogger is 15 months. The most impressive sentence was 8 years in prison. Bloggers are brought to criminal responsibility for libel, abuse, appeals to change the constitutional regime throughout the world, basing mostly on the notes in their diaries, said Rashad Rzakuliyev, a political scientist and president of Azerbaijan’s Social Developments Foundation, commenting on the court decision on the case of Emin Milli and Adnan Hajizade.

The Sabail district court of Baku on November 11 sentenced Emin Milli to 2.5 years, Adnan Hajizade to 2 years in prison. They were accused under articles 221.2.1. (hooliganism) and 127 (purposed causing of slight damage to health) of the Criminal Code.

“In this case Emin Abdullayev and Adnan Hajizade were brought to criminal responsibility under an absolutely different article. An ordinary case with ordinary fighting at one of the Baku restaurants that is featured as banal ‘hooliganism’ has been turned into a smeary political dramedy (drama+comedy).

It is frustrating that two young educated and socially safe people whom I know well are in prison under the court verdict which I think is too strict. But it is even more frustrating that some foreign and international institutions call these two young people ‘political prisoners’ which damages the country’s image”, Rzakuliyev said.

He considers that the foreign interference since the first days of investigation drew the country’s authorities to a difficult situation. “It is odd that European politicians do reconcile with the fact that there cannot be colonial “democracy” in Azerbaijan.

Pressure on the government of sovereign Azerbaijan, especially in such a ridiculous form, causes a reverse effect. A standard story that can occur to anyone could end in the reconciliation of the parties in the dispute. But I consider it immoral to turn this case into a political show whose price can be too high”, president of the Social Developments Foundation has said. 

1news.az