Rights activist says over 130 political prisoners in Azerbaijan
Turan news agency
18 Apr 05
Baku, 18 April: The issue of political prisoners in Azerbaijan remains
open. Today, they number over 130 people and more than 40 have been
put on the wanted list, Leyla Yunus, director of the Institute for
Peace and Democracy, told a round table today.
Yunus dismissed statements by MP Asim Mollazada and the head of the
public and political department of the Presidential Executive Staff,
Ali Hasanov, that the problem with political prisoners has already
been resolved in Azerbaijan. She said 44 prisoners from the list
of 716 prepared by rights activists are still in jail. The rights
activists have prepared a new list of political prisoners and will
send it to the Council of Europe, she said.
She said the rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of
Europe, Malcolm Bruce, would deliver a report on political prisoners
in Azerbaijan on 23 May at the Council of Europe committee on human
rights and legislation.
Yunus also said 75 military officers have been arrested. They are
forced to give testimonies against two generals, she said, but did
not give specific names.
[Passage omitted: minor details]