Held in Azerbaijani Prison, Former Artsakh Speaker Calls Trial a Sham

Driving the news:

Former Artsakh National Assembly Speaker Davit Ishkhanyan, who is being held in a prison in Baku, has issued an audio message addressing the appeal proceedings in his case. The recording was published on the National Assembly of Artsakh’s Facebook page.

Ishkhanyan said the proceedings before Azerbaijan’s Court of Appeal are “formal in nature,” but added that he and his legal team appealed the lower court’s verdict because “that is the path leading to an international court.”

What they’re saying:

Ishkhanyan described the case against him as a politically motivated trial that, which "as nothing to do with criminal offenses and is instead based on ethnic identity and national hatred.

He said that the trial court committed gross violations of Azerbaijan’s Criminal Procedure Code, as well as human rights and international law.

According to Ishkhanyan, the verdict was issued without evidence and without concrete facts. He also argued that the charges against him were unsupported.

He further said that his defense lawyers have not received copies of the indictment, the prosecutorial conclusion, or the court’s verdict. According to Ishkhanyan, they have only been allowed to review electronic versions of those documents in court.

At the end of the recording, he said they would continue their legal fight and urged supporters to stay strong.

The big picture:

According to official figures cited in the statement, 19 Armenian prisoners are currently being held in prisons in Baku, including former political and military leaders of Artsakh who have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from 15 to 20 years or life imprisonment.

@REPUBLICPRESS