Azerbaijani court rejected all motions of the defense of popular video blogger Mehman Huseynov

The Baku Court of Appeal rejected all motions of the defense of popular video blogger in Azerbaijan, who is accused of libel.

As reported by reporter of the Human Rights Information Centre in Baku.

Earlier, Musa Musayev, Chief of the Nasimi District Police Department, filed a private libel suit after the blogger told journalists about tortures committed by the police officers. He stated that he was brutally shoved into the car without recognition marks and detained for whole night without a chance to contact a lawyer and relatives. Blogger was sentenced to two years of imprisonment for libel.

The defense of Mehman Huseynov has filed a motion on allowing the conduction video and photography recording by journalists, for at least five minutes. The court rejected the motion. The court also rejected defenses’ motion about allowing the blogger to sit with his lawyers, and not in a glass cage, during the trial.

The judges were not willing to return case to the court of first instance, since it is a violation of the territorial jurisdiction.

The court also refused to change the measure of restraint to the form of detention under house arrest or bail. When the judge asked Mehman on the requested motion, he answered that he would be happy if they would change the measure of restraint, but he did not care.

The Appeal Court refused to conduct a judicial investigation. The defense of Mehman Huseynov wanted to question witnesses, whom the court of first instance refused to attract them as witnesses. They wanted Musa Musayev to tell about the incurred damages, which he suffered from the statements of Mehman Huseynov. Blogger’s lawyers indicated that their client has not mentioned the names of law enforcement officers at all. According to them, he had a sack on his head when he was beaten.

Blogger’s defense also wanted to conduct a punctuation examination of the administrative protocol on Mehman’s detention to discover whether he signed the document under pressure and whether it was his signature at all.

The representative of the Chief of the Nasimi District Police Department opposed all intercessions of the videoblogger’s lawyers.

Reporter of the Human Rights Information Centre noted that Mehman Huseynov looked vigorous. He often smiled. He was in a glass cell. Mehman confirmed all the motions of his lawyers.

47 people were present in the hall. The court hearing was attended by opposition politicians and diplomats.

The court will continue to consider the case on April 10. The court has to debate and to deliver a verdict on the case.

As a reminder, Mehman Huseynov was detained after he published a video in which he surveyed married men in the streets. He asked them if they would appoint their wives as their deputies in their own companies.

Blogger conducted this survey immediately after Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev appointed his wife Mehriban the first vice-president of the country. Mehman Aliyev, Director of Turan Information Agency, connect the arrest with this video.