On 13
July, in the press center of the Institute for Reporters` Freedom
and Safety, a presentation was held for the project "Public initiatives
on
providing prisoners’ rights in order for them to be freed earlier.”
The
aim of the project is to inform prisoners of their rights to early
release for exemplary behavior and to conduct educational advocacy for
the
provision of this right.
According
to project head Rasul Jafarov, he began the implementation of
this project after he won a contest that was organized by the
"International
Bridges to Justice” organization in 2010.
"Azerbaijani
legislation recognizes this right for prisoners; however,
nothing practically has been done for the implementation of this
right,” said
Jafarov. "If the Justice Ministry gives us permission to have access to
prisons, we will educate the prisoners on this right. If not, we will
conduct
educational advocacy for the relatives of the prisoners.”
During
the first six months of the project, legal education advocacy
trainings regarding this issue will be conducted. The number of
trainings will
be determined by the number of people interested in participating.
During the
second six months of the project, monitoring will be carried out to
identify if
prisoners or their family have a better understanding of this law and
to
identify whether any prisoner was released earlier.
"The
heads of prisons create a list containing the names of
prisoners with exemplary behavior. These prisoners all should have the
right to
early release. However, this list is sent to the Republic's
Prosecutor's
Office where certain choices are made to whether or not a prisoner will
be
released. If a prisoner's name is crossed off the list while at the
Republic's Prosecutor's Office, that prisoner will not be released.
The
fact is, the courts should be the ones who decide whether or not to
release a
prisoner. However, the Republic's Prosecutor's Office is deciding the
fate of prisoners before it can even reach the courts. This causes
great
disappointment among the prisoners," Jarafov said.
Human
rights defenders and lawyers have not excluded hte fact that there
are elements of corruption in this issue. On the other hand, lawyers
have
said that when prisoners have appealed to the leadership of the prison
to be
released earlier, they were subjected to pressure.
Event
participants said that the way to success in this field will be
met through a sustainable and patient fight. They stated that it is
important
to form a team consisting of lawyers, human rights defenders, and
journalists
to fight this issue.
Participate
in
the marathon and support prisoners of conscience!
When using this material please attribute it
to the Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety.
Institute
for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS)
Address:
8 R. Behbudov St., Apt. 85/86, Baku, Azerbaijan
Tel:
(+99 412) 418-0334, E-mail: irfs.az@gmail.com
Website: www.irfs.az, Skype: irfs.az
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