Polad Aslanov is in a punishment cell.
The administration of the correctional facility has placed the editor-in-chief of the online publications Xeberman.com and Press-az.com, Polad Aslanov, in a punishment cell, who had previously declared a hunger strike in protest against the restrictions imposed by the Azerbaijani authorities on the hijab.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on October 8, the convicted editor-in-chief of the online publications Xeberman.com and Press-az.com, Polad Aslanov, declared a hunger strike in colony No. 15 in protest against the violation of the rights of schoolgirls, including his daughter, and female teachers wearing hijabs. He believes that the dress code restrictions violate Article 48 of the Constitution of Azerbaijan, which guarantees freedom of conscience. At the same time, Aslanov's 13-year-old daughter refused to comply with the ban on wearing the hijab at school despite pressure from teachers. Authorities threatened her mother with imprisonment for supporting protests against the school dress code.
Since October 12, school leaders in Azerbaijan have not allowed teachers and schoolgirls who refused to remove their hijabs to attend classes. Around several schools in Baku, students and teachers held lessons in the street in protest. On October 13, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported the detention of 37 protest participants, while activists claimed that more than 200 were detained.
Polad Aslanov's family has had no contact with him since October 12, his wife Gulmira Aslanova reported.
"The last time Polad and I spoke on the phone was on October 12. Given that he is on a hunger strike, there is a need for more regular contact to know about his condition. He did not call last Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, I contacted the ombudsman's office and the penitentiary service. The penitentiary service told me that since calls are allowed twice a week, Polad's next call day would be Friday. But the call did not happen on Friday either. I contacted the penitentiary service again, and they said they would clarify the issue with the colony. But they never responded to me. Our anxiety was heightened by the information we received from unofficial sources that Polad is not in the 15th colony; he has been taken somewhere," Aslanova told a correspondent from "Caucasian Knot".
To clarify the situation, on October 18, Aslanova went to the colony. "I sought a meeting with the management. At first, they did not provide any information. Then an employee said that Polad had been transferred to a punishment cell. They explained this by saying that he is on a hunger strike and therefore must be isolated. But in reality, according to regulations, Polad should have been isolated in a separate room and placed under observation, not put in a punishment cell with stricter conditions of detention," Aslanova said.
She complained that the facility's administration did not accept the cigarettes she wanted to pass to her husband. "I was told that in the punishment cell, they give one pack of cigarettes a day," Aslanova noted.
Polad Aslanov has been on hunger strike since October 8, with a one-day break, she continued. "That was when a representative of the Ministry of Justice told Polad that the restrictions on the hijab had been lifted. When he learned from me on October 12 that the ban was still in effect, he resumed his hunger strike," Aslanova explained.
Her 13-year-old daughter is still not allowed to attend school due to the hijab. "We have already filed a lawsuit complaining about the deprivation of my daughter's right to education," Aslanova said.
Recall that on November 16, 2020, the court sentenced Polad Aslanov to 16 years in prison, finding him guilty of treason. The journalist's appeal was not granted, and the cassation court reduced his sentence by three years, to 13 years in prison. The convicted man's wife believes that her husband is being persecuted for covering human rights violations and the cases of political prisoners. International journalist organizations have called on the Azerbaijani authorities to release Aslanov.