16 August 2024
Detained economist Fazil Gasimov, an associate of economist Gubad Ibadoghlu’s, has said that he was threatened with sexual harrassment and subjected to torture and inhumane treatment.
Gasimov was detained in Turkey and extradited to Azerbaijan as part of the case against economist Gubad Ibadoghlu in August.
Ibadoghlu, a prominent government critic and anti-corruption campaigner, was arrested on 23 July 2023 on charges of production, acquisition, or sale of counterfeit money or securities committed by an organised group. He was later charged with the preparation, storage, or distribution of religious extremist materials.
Gasimov was arrested on the same day alongside three others, and was charged with colluding with Ibadoghlu.
He has been on hunger strike since mid-June.
On Thursday, Meydan TV published Gasimov’s petition at court, in which he appealed for the reversal of its decision to separate the cases of Ibadoghlu and Gasimov and Anar Aliyev, another person detained as part of Ibadoghlu’s case on 16 July.
The news came a day after Ibadoghlu’s lawyer confirmed that his case had been indefinitely ‘frozen’, with no expected date of resolution.
‘They tortured me, threatened my family’
In his appeal to the court, Gasimov argued that its decision to separate his and Aliyev’s case from Ibadoghlu’s case was unfounded, stressing that he was detained on charges of giving Ibadoghlu counterfeit currency.
‘We are charged with the same article, the same act and conspiracy. It is alleged that between June 22–30, I obtained fake dollars in Turkey, gave them to Gubad Ibadoghlu, who then brought them to Azerbaijan’, read Gasimov’s appeal. ‘They tortured me, threatened my family, forced me to give false statements against myself and Gubad Ibadoghlu.’
He went on to state that he had submitted an appeal to the Prosecutor General and the Human Rights Defender in which he testified that he was tortured and subjected to degrading treatment.
‘I have shown there that I was subjected to torture and inhuman treatment. I have stated that I refuse to make false statements in such a situation. According to those statements, the three of us — Gubad Ibadoglu, Anar Aliyev, and I — allegedly talked through video footage. In reality, nothing like that happened. This case must be combined with the other case in order to be considered objectively and fairly.’
Gasimov’s lawyers, Telman Gasimov and Rovshana Rahimli, have expressed concern over his health condition after over 60 days of being on hunger strike. They have filed a motion to have him released under house arrest, which was rejected by the court.
Ibadoghlu was released from prison and placed under house arrest in May and had his case indefinitely ‘suspended’ by the Interior Ministry in July.
Ibadoghlu’s lawyer, Zibeyda Sadigova, on 14 August appeared to confirm the case’s suspension in a written document.
‘Freezing the case during the pre-trial [period] does not drop the charges’, read the document. ‘During this period, the ban on the accused person from leaving the country remains valid’.
Ibadoghlu’s arrest has drawn criticism and condemnation domestically and internationally, with international organisations repeatedly calling for his release.
Prior to his arrest, Ibadoghlu was based in London, where he was a Senior Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics. He was visiting his mother, who was experiencing health issues, at the time of his arrest in Azerbaijan.
On Friday, the Guardian reported that a group of British MPs appealed to Baku to release Ibadoghlu.
‘Azerbaijan’s courts have now frozen the case, cancelled trial proceedings and are preparing to keep Dr Ibadoghlu hostage indefinitely’, read the statement. ‘We ask that you free him unconditionally, allow him to seek medical treatment abroad, and reunite him with his family.
