The lawyer also said that Monica Martinez, the Head of the Rule of Law and Human Rights Department of the Baku OSCE Office had met with Eynulla in Prison #1 on April 4th, to assess his condition.
“Martinez told journalist that OSCE pays its attention to the issue on Fatullayev`s release and tries to conduct negotiations with government” added lawyer.
The lawyers filed a motion to replace Fatullayev’s pre-trial detention with house arrest, but the Appeals Court rejected the motions.
BACKGROUND
On the 29th of December, 2009, 0.223 grams of heroin was reportedly found on Fatullayev in Prison #12 and on the 6th of July, 2010, Fatullayev was found guilty under article 234.1 ( possession of narcotics) of the Criminal Code. His sentence of two years and six months in prison began on the same date. His appeal against the decision was rejected.
In 2007, Eynulla Fatullayev, editor-in-chief of “Realniy Azerbaydjan” and “Gundelik Azerbaycan” newspapers, was sentenced to 8.5 years in jail for threatening terrorism, amongst other charges. However, on April 22, 2010, the European Court of Human Rights ruled for his immediate release and financial compensation from the Azerbaijani government (27,800 EUR). The Azerbaijani Supreme Court Plenum has only partially fulfilled the decision.