Azerbaijan: Further information: Medical care must be provided urgently: Intigam Aliyev
| Publisher | Amnesty International |
| Publication Date | 14 November 2014 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | EUR 55/022/2014 |
| Cite as | Amnesty International, Azerbaijan: Further information: Medical care must be provided urgently: Intigam Aliyev, 14 November 2014, EUR 55/022/2014, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/546b05a34.html [accessed 25 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
URGENT ACTION
medical care must be provided URGENTLY
Azerbaijani human rights defender Intigam Aliyev's health is rapidly deteriorating due to a lack of adequate medical care in the detention facility. This comes at a time when the authorities have removed four of the five lawyers working on Intigam Aliyev's case.
Intigam Aliyev's son told Amnesty International on 12 November that his father's health is worsening daily as he is not receiving adequate medical care in the Kurdakhany detention facility, located outside Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. The medical reports provided to Amnesty International indicate that Intigam Aliyev is suffering from serious spine-related problems and experiencing severe nerve pain and a chronic headache. The human rights defender requires regular medical check-ups, appropriate treatments and physical exercises, which, according to his son, he is not receiving during his outpatient treatment in the detention facility.
Fariz Namazli, Alayif Hasanov, Khalid Bagirov and Adil Ismayilov, four of the five lawyers who have been representing Intigam Aliyev since his detention on 8 August, were removed from the case on 30 September. The lawyers were summoned as witnesses by the prosecutor despite having only a professional interest in his case. Following this, they were verbally informed that they were removed from the case because of a purported conflict of interest. They were also refused access to Intigam Aliyev. Fariz Namazli, Alayif Hasanov, Khalid Bagirov and Adil Ismayilov have not yet received any official notification of the decision regarding their removal, which prevents them from appealing it to the court. The fifth lawyer continues to represent Intigam Aliyev.
The removal of four of the lawyers, who have been representing Intigam Aliyev since his detention, amounts to a violation of his right to be represented by a lawyer of his choice, which is an essential element of the right to fair trial. Amnesty International has previously documented cases in Azerbaijan where lawyers have been threatened, disbarred and pursued with politically motivated disciplinary and criminal sanctions for representing opposition leaders and government critics.
Intigam Aliyev was summoned on 8 August to the Prosecutor General's Office as a witness in a criminal case against a number of Azerbaijani NGOs. He was detained later that day, and the Nasimi regional court in Baku ordered his pre-trial detention on charges of tax avoidance, illegal entrepreneurship and "abuse of power entailing grave consequences" under Azerbaijan's Criminal Code. Amnesty International believes the charges against Intigam Aliyev are trumped-up and considers him a prisoner of conscience.
Please write immediately in Azeri, English or your own language:
Calling on the authorities to release Intigam Aliyev immediately and unconditionally;
Pending this, calling on them to urgently provide Intigam Aliyev with any medical attention he may require, including medication and hospitalization;
Expressing concern that Intigam Aliyev has been denied the right to be defended by lawyers of his choice, which is an essential element of the right to fair trial.
