The Supreme Court in Azerbaijan on Tuesday rejected an appeal for the release of an opposition journalist whose jailing has caused widespread concerns about free speech in the ex-Soviet republic.
Libel and terrorism charges against newspaper editor Eynulla Fatullayev were lifted last month, but he remains in prison after his appeal against a fresh two-and-a-half year sentence for alleged drugs possession was dismissed.
Fatullayev's supporters believe that the authorities are determined to silence the journalist, who was the chief editor of two newspapers that were critical of the government in the oil-rich state.
"The courts are satisfying the wishes of politicians, and that's why everything depends on the politicians' wishes, and not the decision of the court," said Fatullayev's lawyer, Elchin Sadikhov.
Fatullayev was first jailed in 2007, but his sentences under libel and terrorism legislation were lifted after the European Court of Human Rights called for his immediate release earlier this year.
He was then convicted of possessing heroin in prison, causing fresh criticism from the U.S. State Department, which said that the new sentence did not represent progress towards increased freedom of the media in Azerbaijan.
The Azerbaijani authorities have consistently rejected accusations by international rights groups that free speech in the country is seriously limited by restrictive legislation and punitive prosecutions of journalists.
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