Judge keeps newspaper editor locked up for refusing to play volleyball in prison

A judge has rejected a request for the early release of Ganimat Zahidov, the editor of the opposition daily Azadlig in Azerbaijan, on the grounds that he refused to take part in a volleyball game in prison.

“The sole aim of the Azizbekov regional court’s decision is to keep Zahidov in prison as long as possible and prevent him from expressing his views,” Reporters Without Borders said. “It also aims to maintain the climate of intimidation against journalists.”
Describing the decision as “illegal and devoid of any basis,” Zahidov’s lawyer, Elchin Sadyhov, said he was determined to take the case to the European Court of Human Rights.

Zahidov is serving a four-year sentence imposed on 7 March 2008 on charges of “aggravated hooliganism” and “assault and battery” that, RWB says, were trumped up by the police.

Story via Frontline Club