Azerbaijan, Baku / Тrend corr S. Ilhamgizi / A pardon for jailed Azerbaijani journalists is still on the agenda and the Azerbaijani Press Council hopes that Eynulla Fatulayev, who is among the journalists, will also be shown mercy, the chairman of the Press Council Aflatun Amashev said to Trend on 6 November.
The editor-in-chief of the Gundalik Azerbaijan and Realny Azerbaijan newspapers, Eynulla Fatullayev, was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison by the decision of court and was fined AZN 242,522. A sentenced was read in the Heinous Crimes Court of Azerbaijan on 30 October 2007. Fatullayev was charged with violating Articles 214.1 (terrorism), 283.2.2 (hostility) and 213.2.2 (tax evasion) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan.
After Fatullayev was sentenced, the Human Rights Watch, the organization of Reporters without Borders, and the Council of Europe protested against this violation of the freedom of speech and press in Azerbaijan and against Fatullayev's arrest.
"The Press Council received appeals regarding Fatullayev. The Council considered the appeals together with Fatullayev and made definite decisions. However, since the accusations involving Fatullayev have nothing to do with the Press Council, the issue was investigated at court", Amashev said.
"To my thinking, it is still early to speak about a final result, because the issue has to be investigated at other court levels. We want to be sure that several delicate details regarding this journalist will be taken into account," he said, adding that the issue on jailed journalists is still open.