Azerbaijan, Baku, 2 December / Trend corr. I.Alizade/ An issue on pardon of the imprisoned journalists was raised at the Azerbaijani Parliament.
"The Parliament should apply to the President to pardon journalists on the eve of Gurban Holiday," MP Igbal Agazade, the chairman of the opposition Umid Party (Hope), said at a meeting of the Parliament on 2 December.
The three detained journalists held in Azerbaijan are Ganimat Zahid, chief editor of Azadlig newspaper (sentenced to five-year imprisonment), Mirza Sakit, a journalist of Azadlig newspaper (three-year imprisonment), and Eynulla Fatullayev, chief editor of Gundalik Azerbaijan and Realni Azerbaijan newspapers (eight-year and six-month imprisonment).
According to Agazade, discharge of journalists will positively influence on Azerbaijan's image.
MP Siyavush Novruzov, the deputy executive secretary of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (NAP), said that he supported adoption of the Pardon Act in Azerbaijan.
However, people should not be distinguished for their jobs. Every people serve their punishment for their crime. If we want pardon decree, it should not concern only journalists, but also everybody," Novruzov said.
In accordance with 45 signed pardon decrees, 4,858 people have been set free since 1994. Ilham Aliyev inked 13 decrees and National Leader Heydar Aliyev - 32 decrees. Eight amnesty acts, which so far have been signed, concerned 40,000 prisoners.
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