25 July 2012. Member of the International Partnership Group for Azerbaijan, Human Rights House Foundation, has initiated an open letter addressed to the Turkish President Abdullah Gul regarding the legal proceedings against Azerbaijani lawyer Intigam Aliyev.
The letter which was signed by several members of the IPGA calls upon President Gul to ensure that all charges against human rights lawyer Intigam Aliyev are immediately and unconditionally dropped and provide compensation for the acts of ill-treatment he suffered when he was detained in Ataturk Airport on 6 December 2011.
Mr Aliyev was on his way back to Baku, Azerbaijan, from Vilnius, Lithuania, where he took part in the Civil Society Parallel Event organised by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), when he was detained at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkey. After an altercation with a customs officer, Intigam Aliyev’s ticket was invalidated by the officer, Huseyin Kunt, and he was detained and kept in closed room for about four hours. During his detention, he was insulted and intimidated by police officers.
The letter calls upon the authorities of the Republic of Turkey to:
- Immediately and unconditionally drop all criminal charges against human rights lawyer Intigam Aliyev;
- Fully compensate Intigam Aliyev for the ill-treatment he suffered at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul and for the moral and financial damages;
- Undertake an independent investigation into the accusations of ill-treatment against Intigam Aliyev, and bring those responsible to justice.
To see the letter in full click here.