Azerbaijani judge orders change of venue in trial of journalists over Islam article

Soon after the trial of reporter Rafiq Tagi and editor Samir Huseinov opened at a district court in the Caspian Sea nation's capital, Baku, the judge halted the proceedings and ruled that they should be tried in the district where their newspaper offices is located, rather than where they live.

It was not immediately clear when the trial would get under way.

Tagi's November article in the small newspaper Senet asserted that Islam has suffocated people, pulled them away from freedom and hindered humanity's development, and said that the Prophet Muhammad created problems for Eastern countries.

The article sparked angry protests — including calls for Tagi's death — in a village near Baku whose conservative Muslim community has clashed with the authoritarian, secular government, and the case has also deepened concerns about freedom of speech and foreign influence in the oil-rich former Soviet republic.

The article reportedly sparked protests in neighboring Iran, and it has compounded concerns in Azerbaijan about the influence of Iran, which has a large ethnic Azeri minority. The trial is also expected to be closely watched in the West, which is interested in Azerbaijan because of its oil riches and its strategic position between Iran and Russia.

If convicted, Tagi and Huseinov could face three to five years in prison. The trial had been expected to start in January, but the court postponed it to give prosecutors more time to investigate, keeping the defendants in custody.

The prosecution has added to concerns about restrictions on freedom of speech in Azerbaijan under President Ilham Aliyev, who took over from his father in a 2003 election denounced by opponents as a sham and has faced persistent criticism over the heavy-handed treatment of independent media. The Associated Press

/The International Herald Tribune/