Leigh in Azerbaijan

The following comes from Today.Az in Azerbaijan. This site, an apparent voice of the government, would seem to indicate that there is a change of political will concerning imprisoning journalists.

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One of former political prisoners, Faina Kunqurova died in prison (November 18, 2007) in unclear circumstances a few weeks later after the second arrest. The authorities still haven’t provided a convincing explanation of reasons for death of this sportswoman who went on a hunger strike since she was illegally arrested.

At least 52 political prisoners died in prison apart from Kungurova. One person dies almost each month as the result of tortures at police stations or detention centers. This number demands for a careful attention to another unfulfilled commitment of Azerbaijan before the Council of Europe: “to prosecute members of the law-enforcement bodies who have infringed human rights (particularly the prohibition of torture) in the course of their duties”.