On November 19 CPJ introduced 2009 Press Freedom Awardees. Imprisoned editor-in-chief of "Gundelik Azerbaijan" and "Realniy Azerbaijan" newspapers Eynulla Fatullayev is among the awardees.
“Fatullayev is an investigative journalist whose colleague, editor Elmar Huseynov, was assassinated in 2005,” said Nina Ognianova, CPJ’s Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. Fatullayev is serving more than eight years on fabricated charges after his reporting on the unsolved Huseynov slaying raised questions about government obstruction. His only crime is his journalism. He is being punished for doing a job that the government has not done: investigating the murder of his editor.”
The Committee to Protect Journalists gives the awards each year to courageous journalists working in dangerous and repressive circumstances.
Gundelik Azerbaijan" and "Realny Azerbaijan" newspapers' editor-in-chief Eynulla Fatullayev was sentenced to 2.5 years of imprisonment on 21 April 2007 for insulting honor and dignity. Later he was convicted under articles 214.1 (threatening terror), 283.2.2 (incitement of ethnic/national, social or religious hatred abusing authority), and 213.2.2 (tax evasion) of the Criminal Code and was sentenced to 8.5 years of imprisonment on 30 October 2007.