Secretary General condemns pardoning of Ramil Safarov by Azerbaijan
Strasbourg, 4 September 2012 - In a statement today the Council of Europe's Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland said that murder - such as that committed by Ramil Safarov - cannot be glorified.
"Ramil Safarov was convicted for murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in Hungary. On August 31, he was transferred to Azerbaijan, and immediately pardoned. I do not want to comment on the legal proceedings, but I find it unacceptable that a convicted murderer is welcomed as a hero."
"I reject the prospect of a world whose moral code begins to fray, where respect for human dignity is denied. This is not the Europe that we should wish for future generations. I condemn such glorification of crime, and urge that we all work to uphold the respect for life, and our values as defended by the Council of Europe", he said.
