Odabashev and Niyazov
In CCE 22.8 [9] it was reported that Anvar (Enver) Odabashev, chairman of the Chief Organizing Committee of the Meskhetian Turks, had been sentenced in August 1971 to 2 years in a labour camp under Article 162 (Azerbaijan SSR Criminal Code: “wilful seizure of land and unwarranted erection of buildings’).
It was also reported that in September 1971 Mukhlis Niyazov, the deputy chairman of the committee, had been arrested.
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The Chronicle now knows that Odabashev was released only in April 1974, as he received an additional sentence (= Article 190-1, RSFSR Criminal Code).
It has also become known that Niyazov was arrested on 3 October 1971. On 29 November 1971 the people’s court of the Nasimin district of Baku (presiding judge, I. A. Aliev; people’s assessors, Safarov and Alieva; State prosecutor, Eminov) sentenced him to three and a half years in an intensified-regime labour camp on charges of “hooliganism” (Article 207, pt. 2, Azerbaijan SSR Criminal Code), “criminal negligence” and “giving exaggerated figures and other distortions of plan-fulfilment”.
According to the verdict, Niyazov committed ‘hooliganism’ when on 9 August 1971 he “insulted the participants of a front-rank workers’ meeting with cynical and indecent expressions, using bad language about the Azerbaijani people”. He shouted and rudely interrupted speakers at the meeting, not allowing them to speak, with the consequence that the meeting had to be abandoned. According to the verdict Niyazov committed the acts of criminal malfeasance in office while working as an economist on a collective farm. At the trial Niyazov pleaded not guilty to the charge of hooliganism. He testified that he had indeed taken part in the meeting on 9 August and had spoken without permission, but that he had not insulted or cursed anyone, had not used bad language and had not broken up the meeting.
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The Chronicle has in its possession three statements signed by 65 Meskhetians from three collective farms, who were present at the meeting on 9 August 1971, which give the following account:
“At the meeting there were about 2,500 Turks and 250 of the local inhabitants. After Mrs Bilor, Mrs Salim, Osman and Rakhman had all made speeches, the people asked Mukhlis Niyazov to speak.
“In his speech he used no insulting or obscene words, nor did he break up the meeting, which continued afterwards with speeches by Ellez, Resheddin, Sakhaddin, Movlud and others …
“After he was sentenced, we saw copies of the verdict and we learned that the following perjured witnesses gave fabricated evidence: Einullayev, G. Mamedov, S. Mamedov, R. Mamedov, Agayev, Mardanov, O. Mamedov and Badirov … There was not one witness from among the 2,500 Turks who were present at the meeting, and included Party and Komsomol members and workers: eight witnesses were found out of the 250 local people.”
On 8 May 1974 Niyazov was released. The reasons for his early release are not known to the Chronicle.
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