Bayram Mammadov – the “statue prisoner has started a hunger strike in protest against his living conditions. He has presented the prison administration with a letter notifying them of his intent.
Mammadov’s father Farman Mammadov told reporters that his son’s bed is next to the toilet. The Chief of Penitentiary Facility 13 promised that he would Bayram when another bed became free, but this still has not happened.
“Bayram said the empty beds are sold to the other prisoners,” said Farman Mammadov.
On May 2, Bayram Mammadov told his lawyer about the harassment he was facing in prison. His clothes were put off and he was placed in front of the penalty camera. Ombudsman Office lawyer Rashid Rumzadeh and the Press Department of the Penitentiary Service have said they will investigate this casethe incident, but no updates have been made available.
Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov were arrested on drug charges after painting graffiti on a statue of former president Heydar Aliyev. The graffiti read “Happy Slave Day”, a pun on “Happy Flower Day”. Flower Day, celebrated as a national holiday on 10 May, marks the former President’s birthday. On the other side of the statue, the activists used obscene language to convey messages of political protest.
Amnesty International has recognised the two youth activists as prisoners of conscience. Both were handed ten-year jail sentences in autumn 2016.