Five activists continue hunger strike in support of political prisoners in Baku

Today, at the office of the "Musavat" Party, five oppositionists have continued their hunger strike with the demand to release blogger Mekhman Guseinov and other political prisoners. Some political prisoners continue the hunger strike in penal colonies and SIZOs (pre-trial prisons), their relatives report.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 13, four Azerbaijani activists serving their sentences at the penal colony No. 13 declared a hunger strike in solidarity with Mekhman Guseinov and with the demand to release all political prisoners in the country. On January 14, it became known that three more prisoners had joined their hunger strike. Besides, on January 7, the hunger strike was started at the office of the "Musavat" Party under the slogan reading: "Freedom to Mekhman Guseinov and other political prisoners"; on January 9, seven people participated in it.

Tofiq Yagublu, a member of the board for the "Musavat" Party, has stopped his protest action after thirteen days of being on hunger strike because of sharp deterioration of his health state, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent is informed by investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova, a participant of the hunger strike.

"Tofiq Yagublu started a hunger strike at home on January 4, and then he continued his protest action at the party's office. On January 15, on the twelfth day of his hunger strike, he declared a dry hunger strike. His body was already severely exhausted, and he suddenly felt bad because of the dry hunger strike. On January 16, after our insistent requests, he stopped his hunger strike," Khadija Ismayilova said.

The journalist herself has been participating in the protest action since January 15. Today, activist Aigyul Jafarova and Zafar Akhmedov and Rafiq Bakhshov, fathers of political prisoners Fuad Akhmedli and Orkhan Bakhyshly, activists of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), have continued the hunger strike together with Khadija Ismayilova. The fathers of political prisoners also joined the protest action on January 15. Rovshan Niftalyzade, another activist, again went on a hunger strike on January 16.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 17, 2019 at 05:12 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.