Political arrests in Azerbaijan
The decision of the Azerbaijani court to detain Anar Mammadli, the head of the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center (EMDS), will be appealed in the appellate court, according to one of his lawyers, Javad Javadov.
The defense considers Mammadli’s prosecution unjustified. The accusation against him is “abstract.” The basis for Mammadli’s arrest is stated as general allegations that between 2021 and 2024, he imported foreign currency through Baku Airport without customs control. However, it is not specified when, in what amounts, or by what means, says Javadov.
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“Mammadli stated in court that until 2022, he underwent personal customs control upon entry and exit, carrying a maximum of $1,000.
“On the other hand, there is a rigorous control system at the airport. If luggage raises suspicion, it is marked with a red ribbon for inspection.
“There is also a system for checking hand luggage when leaving the airport. Therefore, there are no opportunities for systematic currency smuggling. Thus, there are no material grounds for Mammadli’s arrest,” the lawyer says.
“He also notes that there are no procedural grounds for keeping Mammadli in custody, as he is a well-known figure in society, and no evidence has been presented that he might flee if released.
“As for the searches at Mammadli’s and his father’s apartment, the defense also considers them unjustified. However, nothing illegal was found during the searches.
“Anar Mammadli was detained on April 29 in the Abzas Media case. He is charged under Article 206.3.2 (smuggling by prior agreement of persons) of the Criminal Code. The next day, the court ordered his detention for almost four months.”
International organizations continue to call on the official Baku to release prominent human rights defender and activist Anar Mammadli.
“We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Anar Mammadli,” said a statement from the Norwegian Human Rights House.
The organization demands that the Azerbaijani authorities drop all charges against him, respect international obligations, implement decisions of the European Court of Human Rights on the Mammadli group, end the persecution of independent voices in the country, release all political prisoners, respect the rights of independent civil society and media.
“We call on the UN and the Council of Europe, as well as the European Union, to use COP29 in Baku for this purpose,” the statement said.
In turn, Amnesty International researcher for the South Caucasus, Natali Notadze, on behalf of her organization, also called for the immediate release of Anar Mammadli.
“The authorities must immediately stop the campaign of intimidation against civil society and stop blatantly arresting their critics ahead of COP29 in Baku in November,” she said.
The arrest of Anar Mammadli is indicative of judicial abuses to silence government critics. Illegal searches, restricted access to lawyers, torture and cruel treatment in detention, as well as arbitrary arrests, are an attempt to silence the opposition, she said.
Three rapporteurs of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) on Azerbaijan have expressed concern over the arrest of one of the leaders of civil society in Azerbaijan, Anar Mammadli, the Council of Europe’s press service reported.
“Mr. Mammadli is one of the founders of the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center, which conducts independent monitoring of elections in Azerbaijan.
In September 2014, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe awarded him the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize,” the statement said by PACE rapporteurs on monitoring Azerbaijan, Lise Christoffersen (Norway) and Ian Liedel-Grainger (UK), as well as the rapporteur on the issue of “Threats to the Lives and Safety of Journalists and Human Rights Defenders in Azerbaijan,” Hannah Bardell.
They noted the need to review Mammadli’s case.
“We are deeply concerned that Mr. Mammadli has been detained again. His lawyer has stated that the detention is related to the case against a number of journalists from Abzas Media and is considered by independent civil society as politically motivated.
We call on the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately review this case and to prevent the criminal prosecution of Mr. Mammadli, whose human rights activities are difficult to overestimate,” the rapporteurs said.