AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Nov 18 2004
Azeri officer faces life in prison
The trial of Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov, charged with killing
an Armenian serviceman, will start in Budapest, Hungary on November
23.
During NATO training sessions in Budapest in February, the two men
had a dispute [sic] which resulted in the death of the Armenian officer
Gurgen Margarian. Safarov was arrested and charged with the
premeditated murder article of Hungary’s Criminal Code. He now faces
between 10 and 15 years in jail, or life imprisonment.
The officer’s lawyer Adil Ismayilov has told journalists that Safarov
is expected to give his testimony on the first day of the trial which
is not expected to complete this year, as it will take some time to
summon foreign citizens for witness testimonies in court.
He said that Safarov will be defended in court by a Hungarian
attorney Peter Zolay, who was appointed as his defense lawyer in the
course of the investigation.
The Azeri officer will be represented by a single Hungarian lawyer,
as Ismaylov will most likely not be allowed to defend Safarov in
court.
“Hungarian laws do not allow foreign attorneys, therefore, I will
probably not be permitted to act as his defense lawyer in court”,
Ismayilov said.
Commenting on Safarov’s possible acquittal, Ismayilov said that the
decision is under the authority of the court.
“However, we will do our best to defend Safarov and to make sure he
gets a sentence adequate to the crime he committed,” he said.
Asked whether Safarov could serve his prison term in Azerbaijan, if
convicted, according to the existing European convention, Ismayilov
said: “Our countries do not currently have an agreement on mutual
legal assistance, but I believe that this is possible according to
the existing international convention. Azerbaijan signed the document
which envisions extradition of convicted individuals to serve prison
terms in their home countries. This means that if the Azerbaijan
Ministry of Justice appeals to the Hungarian Ministry, he could be
extradited.”
Appeal
A letter with more than 100,000 signatures in Safarov’s defense
collected by the Committee for Safarov’s Rights was sent to the
Budapest Court on Tuesday on the initiative of the Garabagh
Liberation Organization.
The Azerbaijani public is keeping the trial of Safarov in focus, the
letter reads.
“The officer, whose family has been subject to the Armenian
aggression, committed the murder in a state of affect after the
Armenian serviceman humiliated his honor and dignity,” the letter
says.
In the letter the Committee requested the Budapest Court to carry out
an unbiased investigation and trial and prevent any interference by
the Armenian authorities and lobby in the court proceedings.
“A fair decision to come will serve strengthening friendly relations
and cooperation between Azerbaijan and Hungary, as well as stepping
up mutual trust,” the letter said.