Professors sign letter supporting Hajizada, pretrial hearing delayed

In the first unified response to the University of Richmond to alumnus Adnan Hajizada's controversial arrest in Azerbaijan, 17 professors have co-signed letters in his support to Virginia congressional leaders, Azerbaijan's president and its U.S. ambassador.

Vincent Wang, chairman of the political science department, said it was his duty to try to help a former student, much like parents might come to the aid of their children in perilous times.

"If our effort, from the angle of teachers, may help Adnan's fate, we would be gratified," Wang said.

The professors sent letters to Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., and Rep. Eric Cantor, R-7th, and to Yashar Aliyev, U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan, and Azerbaijan president Ilham Allyev, asking them to give Hajizada and fellow activist Emin Milli proper due process of law while ensuring their rights and safety.

Professors from a broad range of disciplines signed the letter, from mathematics to art history, political science and classical studies. They included Michele Cox, director of international programs; Raymond Hilliard, professor of English; Rick Mayes, associate professor of political science; and Daniel Palazzolo, professor of political science, among others.

Authorities arrested Hajizada, 26, and Milli, 30, on July 8 after two men attacked them at a restaurant in the capital city of Baku, questioning their criticism of the Azeri government, according to court documents filed by Hajizada's lawyer.

When Hajizada and Milli reported the incident to police a short time later, they were arrested and charged with hooliganism. Charges were not levied against the two men who apparently left Hajizada with a broken nose and other injuries.

While at Richmond, Hajizada was a promising student, Wang said, who fought for positive development for Azerbaijan's future.

Asked whether Richmond should, as a university, get involved in another country's politics, Wang said he and other professors approached the officials as teachers, asserting their right to free speech. He said Azerbaijan was not isolated in the current globalized world and that a response to international concerns would advance Azerbaijan.

"Students and former students should have freedom of speech," he said.

The professors wrote in the letters that they firmly believed young people with progressive ideas were important for a better future.

"We also remember him (Adnan) as an outstandingly polite and respectful gentleman; it is hard to imagine he would engage in acts of 'hooliganism,'" the letter reads.

The letter ends with a statement asserting that the resolution of the arrests "may have an impact on the scholarly exchanges between Azerbaijan and the United States."

Yusuf Makhkamov, a friend of Hajizada's and a 2006 alumnus from Uzbekistan, said Hajizada was an outgoing person who would go out of his way to help people, acting also as a cultural interpreter who helped him adjust to living in America.

The Azeri Court of Appeals has postponed a hearing about the pretrial detention -- expected to be up to two months -- until July 20 for both men, Hajizada's father confirmed. The two face between one and five years in prison.

Calls to the Azerbaijan embassy in Washington, D.C., and the press secretary in Azerbaijan went unanswered. A Facebook message to Hajizada's girlfriend was not immediately returned Friday afternoon.

The government released a statement on July 14, addressing the international pressure and protesting against the outcry over what it called an "ordinary hooliganism case."

"We call on the embassies of separate countries to end interfere in the investigation, which is out of their diplomatic missions," the statement reads.

Hajizada, a 2005 Richmond graduate, is a video blogger for the Ol! Youth Movement, a group dedicated toward creating an "independently thinking, well educated and capable youth" in Azerbaijan, according to its manifesto. Both activists are known for using social networking, including Facebook, blogs, YouTube and Twitter to deliver their messages.

Critics have asserted in recent months that Allyev has taken an increasingly authoritarian approach to governing the country, including pushing for restrictions on non-governmental organizations. Activist groups and friends charge that the bloggers' arrests are part of a government effort to punish them for their online activism.

Other international groups are responding to the incident, including Amnesty International, whose officials released a statement saying they were concerned "police did not carry out a thorough and impartial investigation of the events."

"Amnesty International believes that both may have been targeted for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression," the statement reads.

Jean-Francois Julliard, secretary-general of Reporters Without Borders, a group dedicated to press freedom, called the charges against Hajizada and Milli "baseless" in a July 16 statement and said they should be dropped immediately.

"The court took no account of what their lawyers had to say in their defense," Juillard said in the statement. "These are serious violations of their basic rights."

Several blogs, video blogs and Web sites have been started to advocate for their release. Ol! Youth Movement's Web site sent a letter to Allyev, asking him to "put an end to this lawlessness" and arguing the men would become key players in Azerbaijan's future.

"You, are the president of all this youth," the letter reads. "Hear us!"

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Stephanie Rice reported from San Diego and Dan Petty from Denver.

Contact staff writer Stephanie Rice at stephanie.rice@richmond.edu and reporter Dan Petty at dan.petty@richmond.edu