Azerbaijan, Baku, 4 April / Trend corr. K.Ramazanova / Representatives from the French, British, German, Italian and Greek Embassies in Azerbaijan visited the detained journalists, who went on a hunger strike, on 4 April. The embassy representatives expressed concern in connection with the state of media in Azerbaijan and noted that they would inform their government of the situation.
On 26 March, the imprisoned Fatullayav went on a hunger strike. The editor-in-chief demands objective consideration of his case, the release of arrested journalists and for tangible protection mechanisms from the Council of Europe and OSCE.
The chief editor of Gundelik Azerbaijan newspaper, Shahvalad Chobanoglu, editor-in-chief of Yeni Musavat newspaper, Zahid Safaroglu and journalist of the newspaper, Elshan Balakhanli, are on a hunger strike for five consecutive days in support of the editor-in-chief of Gundalik Azerbaijan and Realniy Azerbaijan newspaper, Eynulla Fatullayev.
Fatullayev, editor-in-chief of the Gundalik Azerbaijan and Realni Azerbaijan newspapers was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison by the decision of the Heinous Crimes Court on 30 October. The sentence 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. Fatullayev allegedly did not pay tax in the amount of AZN 242,522. Fatullayev was charged resulting from articles published in his newspapers by the lawsuit of Tatyana Chaladzeh, head of the State Committee on Refugees and Internally Displaced People (IDP) on 20 April.
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