Jailed Azerbaijani blogger released in time for mother's funeral

Video blogger Mehman Huseynov, currently serving a two-year sentence in an Azerbaijani prison, was allowed to attend his mother’s funeral. The case attracted popular attention after the Ministry of Justice had infamously denied Huseynov’s request to visit his severely ill mother in hospital just some days earlier.

Huseynov was convicted in 2017 after the head of the Nasimi District Police Department, Musa Musayev, accused him of libel. The accusation came in response to the blogger’s statement that the officers of this department had tortured him during a previous arrest.

It became public knowledge a few weeks ago that Huseynov’s mother was on her deathbed, but the Ministry of Justice delayed granting his request to allow him a goodbye visit to the hospital.

According to Huseynov’s attorney, such cases are accommodated for by the law, which allows a convict a short leave, yet the final decision remains with the relevant authorities. The blogger’s mother passed away two days after his request was denied, though he was granted leave to attend her funeral.

In an interview he gave before the funeral, Huseynov said that his parents ‘were all alone now that all their sons were far from them’. Emin Huseynov, the elder brother of the blogger and founder of the Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS), was subjected to pressure from the authorities and emigrated to Switzerland.