Bakhtiyar Hajiyev Freed From Prison After Senators Send Letter
WASHINGTON, D.C–(ENEWSPF)–June 5, 2012. U.S. Senators Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) welcomed the Azerbaijani government’s decision yesterday to release dissident Bakhtiyar Hajiyev from prison. The Supreme Court of Azerbaijan ordered Bakhtiyar Hajiyev released “for good behavior” under the condition that Mr. Hajiyev remain within the country for nine months.
Hajiyev, a 30-year-old Harvard-educated democratic activist, was arrested in March 2011 for organizing a peaceful demonstration against the Azerbaijani government. In May 2011, a court sentenced Mr. Hajiyev to two years in prison for allegedly failing to complete mandatory military service. After Mr. Hajiyev was initially detained, reports showed he endured severe beatings, which continued throughout his detention.
Last month, Senators Kirk and Cardin, along with Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Barbara Boxer (D-Cali.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), wrote to Azerbaijani President Aliyev urging Hajiyev’s release. A copy of the Senators’ May 15, 2012 letter to President Aliyev can be found here. In March 2011, Senator Kirk wrote to the Secretary of State calling attention to the case when Hajiyev was first imprisioned. The letter from Senator Kirk to the Secretary of State can be accessed here.
“Senator Kirk welcomes the end of Mr. Hajiyev’s unjust imprisonment in Azerbaijan,” a spokesperson for Senator Kirk said. “Azerbaijan must respect its citizens basic human rights, including the freedom of expression. Senator Kirk expresses his continued solidarity with Mr. Hajiyev, his family and political dissidents imprisoned around the world.”
“I welcome the release of Mr. Hajiyev. While I do not believe he should have been arrested in the first place, I sincerely hope his release indicates that the Azerbaijani government will start to implement seriously its OSCE commitments such as guaranteeing freedom of speech, association, and movement, all of which I believe are fundamental freedoms and basic human rights,” said Senator Cardin, who serves as Co-Chairman of the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE).
Source: kirk.senate.gov
