Baku activist Djavadov accuses law enforcers of torture

A Baku court has left Djalal Djavadov, an activist, under arrest despite his claim of torture after his detention and falsification of his confessions.

On January 30, Djavadov stopped communicating. As it became known, he was arrested for 30 days. The court found him guilty under the article "Illegal use of narcotic drugs not for the purpose of sale in quantities necessary for personal consumption."

"Djalal said that at the police station they put water in front of him and demanded that he drink it. Djalal suspected that drugs were mixed into the water and refused to drink it. After that, they started beating him up. Under torture, Djalal was forced to drink the liquid. After some time, he felt very ill and an ambulance was called for him," Sezgin Rustamov, an activist, has explained.

During the consideration of the appeal complaint, it turned out that in the court ruling, Djavadov was credited with a confession. "But Djalal said that he refused to give such testimonies ... that his signature in the case materials was falsified," Mr Rustamov has added, noting that Djalal has treated his case as fabricated and politically motivated. "Djalal stated that he had never used drugs; and the evidence was fabricated against him, forcing him to drink the liquid that contained drugs, so that they could later ‘find’ them in his blood," Sezgin Rustamov has noted.