Date of Birth: 20 March 1995
Detained Since: 20 September 2023
Affiliation: Chair, Labour Desk Trade Unions Confederation (İşçi Masası)

Charges:

• Intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm by a method posing general danger, with hooliganistic intent (Art. 126.2.4)

• Aggravated hooliganism committed with the use of a weapon (Art. 221.3)

• Unlawful acquisition, sale, or carrying of a gas/bladed weapon (Art. 228.4)

Conviction and Sentence:
On 14 January 2025, Afiyaddin Mammadov was sentenced to 8 years in prison by the Baku Assize Court. The Baku Court of Appeal upheld the verdict on 9 April 2025.

Political Prisoner Status:

His detention meets criteria (a) and (e) of PACE Resolution 1900 (2012):

• Violation of freedom of expression and association under the ECHR.

• His prosecution is politically motivated and aimed at silencing him for his trade-union leadership and civic activism.

Summary:

Afiyaddin Mammadov is an Azerbaijani labour rights activist and Chair of the Labour Desk Trade Unions Confederation—the country’s only independent and alternative union organising gig-economy workers. He was also a board member of the Democracy 1918 (D18) Movement, known for its pro-democracy advocacy.

He was detained on 20 September 2023 and charged with intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm and aggravated hooliganism after an unidentified man accused him of stabbing him with a knife. The allegations lack credibility and are widely viewed as fabricated. In December 2023, prosecutors expanded the indictment to include possession of a bladed weapon.

His prosecution—known as part of the “Labour Desk (İşçi Masası) case”—is emblematic of a new wave of repression targeting independent trade unions and grassroots civic initiatives. The trial relied exclusively on police testimony and the statements of the alleged victim, with no verifiable forensic evidence linking Mammadov to the crime. Defence motions to obtain surveillance footage or independent expert assessments were denied, while his reports of ill-treatment and forced fingerprinting were ignored.

The verdict was based on flawed reasoning and politically charged narratives portraying the Labour Desk as a threat to national stability. The court failed to ensure impartiality, disregarded exculpatory evidence, and relied on testimony from state-controlled forensic institutions.

Mammadov’s arrest followed years of harassment and repeated short-term detentions in 2022–2023 for his involvement in peaceful protests and solidarity with other political prisoners. His case reflects Azerbaijan’s broader crackdown on independent labour organising and civic activism since 2023, replicating the patterns of politically motivated prosecutions condemned by the European Court of Human Rights in earlier repression cycles.

International human rights organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have denounced his arrest and conviction as politically motivated and unjust.

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