Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08BAKU61
2008-01-24 08:56:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Baku
Cable title:  

OPPOSITION JOURNALIST RECEIVES SIX-YEAR PRISON

Tags:  PHUM PGOV PREL KDEM KCOR AJ 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHKB #0061 0240856
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 240856Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY BAKU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4627
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHAK/AMEMBASSY ANKARA PRIORITY 2581
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE PRIORITY 0804
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L BAKU 000061 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2018
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL KDEM KCOR AJ
SUBJECT: OPPOSITION JOURNALIST RECEIVES SIX-YEAR PRISON
SENTENCE FOR ACCEPTING A BRIBE

Classified By: POL/ECON CHIEF JOAN POLASCHIK PER 1.4(B,D).

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAKU 000061

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/24/2018
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL KDEM KCOR AJ
SUBJECT: OPPOSITION JOURNALIST RECEIVES SIX-YEAR PRISON
SENTENCE FOR ACCEPTING A BRIBE

Classified By: POL/ECON CHIEF JOAN POLASCHIK PER 1.4(B,D).


1. (SBU) On January 21, the Court of Grave Crimes convicted
opposition Bizim Yol newspaper correspondent Mushvig Huseynov
of accepting a bribe (Criminal Code article 331),and
sentenced him to six years' imprisonment. In addition to the
prison sentence, the court banned Huseynov from engaging in
"journalistic activity" for a period of two years. Huseynov
was arrested on July 24, 2007, after accepting a bribe from
Rizvan Aliyev, a Ministry of Labor and Social Protection
employee, allegedly in exchange for an agreement not to
publish embarrassing articles about the Ministry. The
incident appears to have been a set-up, as the entire
exchange between Aliyev and Huseynov was videotaped and
broadcast on national television.


2. (C) Vugar Khasiyev, Huseynov's defense attorney, told us
that the trial was conducted in a biased manner. According
to Khasiyev, the prosecutor was given the opportunity to
present all relevant pieces of evidence, while the defense
was not. In addition, the judge denied most motions raised
by the defense. Khasiyev also maintains that his client did
not accept the bribe, and therefore has not committed a
crime. Khasiyev said that Huseynov plans to pursue his case
up through the European Court of Human Rights if the Court of
Appeals and the Supreme Court uphold the Court of Grave
Crimes' ruling.


3. (U) The Institute for Reporter Freedom and Safety (IRFS)
publicly condemned the court's decision in Huseynov's case,
calling judge Jamal Ramazanov's ruling "unfair" and accusing
him of basing the verdict on a "political order." IRFS
reported that the prosecution committed numerous "procedural
violations and falsifications" during the trial. The
organization labeled the charges against Huseynov "spurious,"
and concluded that Huseynov is "the victim of political
provocation, as part of (a) campaign carried out by the
government to damage the reputation of journalists in the
eyes of the local and international community." Similarly,
the Media Rights Institute publicly stated that the verdict
was ungrounded, and an example of continued activity to
suppress freedom of speech. The NGO also characterized
Huseynov as a "victim of an operation developed with (the)
participation of state officials."


4. (C) Turan News Agency Head Mehman Aliyev called Huseynov's
imprisonment a "political farce," stating his belief that it
is hypocritical for the GOAJ to jail Huseynov, but not
corrupt government officials. Aliyev said that the GOAJ is
branching out from its usual modus operandi of imprisoning
journalists for defamation, and is now fabricating cases
involving bribery, terrorism, narcotics, and hooliganism.
Others in the media community have a different view. Seher
newspaper Editor-In-Chief Gabil Abbasoglu, Democratic League
of Journalists Head Yadigar Mammadli, and Yeni Nasil Union
Head Arif Aliyev agreed that while Huseynov is guilty of
accepting a bribe, they believe that the six-year prison
sentence is much too harsh, likening the sentence to those
given to government officials implicated in gross
misappropriation of state property.


5. (C) COMMENT: Although there have been several recent
cases of journalists imprisoned for accepting bribes,
Huseynov's case has garnered widespread attention because of
his affiliation with a somewhat well-known opposition
newspaper. While some local journalists and human rights
activists have taken a harder stance on Huseynov's case, most
remain focused on the length of Huseynov's prison sentence,
perceived to be unduly harsh. Whether or not the July 24
incident was a set-up, Huseynov was caught on film accepting
a bribe, providing a perfect example for GOAJ officials'
continued claims that the media problems in Azerbaijan are a
result of journalists' "unprofessional" behavior, rather than
a result of intentional government pressure. We continue to
actively promote training programs for Azerbaijani
journalists.
DERSE