Imprisonment of four months during the pre-trial period for an Azerbaijani scientist, charged with conspiracy against the nation.
Scoop: Azerbaijani researcher Bahruz Samadov lands in hot water, slapped with treason charges and a four-month stint in the slammer. The academic, who swears he's as innocent as a newborn lamb, has vowed to go on a hunger strike.
Police nabbed Samadov on August 21, and during a court hearing at Sabayil District Court in Baku on the 23rd, he was ordered detained under suspicion of messing with Azerbaijan's national security. The run-down: authorities claim Samadov's actions violate Article 274 of Azerbaijan's Criminal Code, which carries a sentence of 12-20 years for anyone who undermines the country's sovereignty, territory, or defense.
Details on the situation that led to Samadov's arrest are scarce, but sources say his lawyer, Zibeyda Sadigova, has yet to discuss the case with her client. Family members stated this fact in a report spread by RFE/RL's Azeri-language service.
The beef between Samadov and the Azerbaijani government? It seems the researcher has been a sharp critic of the country's military actions in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region caught in a bitter standoff between Armenia and Azerbaijan for decades. Samadov's writings and interviews have appeared in numerous media outlets, including Eurasianet.
In a report after the arrest, OC Media, another outlet Samadov contributed to, quoted him saying, "I've never betrayed my country."
Samadov's case echoes a stated trend of silencing independent voices in Azerbaijan. In mid-July, another researcher, Igbal Abilov, was also crammed in a cell, also on suspicion of violating Article 274 and other criminal offenses. And on August 23, OC Media reported another contributor, Samad Shikhi, was butt-heads with Baku airport officials while trying to jet off the country.
Now, that's some heavy stuff, folks! Stay tuned for updates in this developing story.
Insights: Samadov, a Ph.D. candidate at Charles University in Prague, was actively involved in efforts to foster peaceful coexistence between Armenia and Azerbaijan. His arrest, along with other researchers, was seen as part of an escalating crackdown on dissent in Azerbaijan. Samadov's criticism focused on the long-standing conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh. The Azerbaijani government's intolerance for dissenting voices, particularly those advocating for peaceful resolution of conflicts, reflects this continued tension.[1][3][4]
- The arrest of Bahruz Samadov, a critic of Azerbaijan's military actions in Nagorno-Karabakh, has raised concerns about the Azerbaijani government's intolerance for dissenting voices, particularly those advocating for peaceful resolution of conflicts, as seen in the recent crackdown on independent voices.
- The ongoing arrests and detainments of researchers like Bahruz Samadov, Igbal Abilov, and Samad Shikhi, under charges that include violations of Article 274 of Azerbaijan's Criminal Code, have shifted the general-news landscape towards crime-and-justice issues, with a focus on the Azerbaijani government's suppression of political dissent.
