Date of Birth: 8 March 2000
Detained Since: 13 December 2023
Affiliation: Member, Labour Desk Trade Unions Confederation (İşçi Masası)

Charges:

• Illegal acquisition, possession, preparation, processing, or transportation of a significant quantity of narcotic substances without intent to sell (Art. 234.1 of the Criminal Code)
• Later amended to illegal acquisition, possession, preparation, processing, or transportation of narcotic drugs with intent to sell, in large quantities (Art. 234.4.3 of the Criminal Code)

Conviction and Sentence:
On 25 February 2025, the Baku Assize Court convicted Mohyaddin Orujov under Article 234.1-1 (possession of a significant quantity of narcotics without intent to sell) and sentenced him to three years in prison. The Baku Court of Appeal upheld the verdict on 1 May 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, aiming to punish his participation in independent labour organising and to dismantle the Labour Desk movement.

Summary:

Mohyaddin Orujov is a young gig-economy worker and labour-rights activist, and a member of the Labour Desk Trade Unions Confederation—Azerbaijan’s only independent union representing courier and platform workers. He was detained on 13 December 2023 and initially charged with drug possession, before prosecutors escalated the case to large-scale drug trafficking within 24 hours.

His arrest forms part of the broader “Labour Desk (İşçi Masası) case”, a coordinated crackdown that has targeted multiple union members, including Afiyaddin Mammadov, Elvin Mustafayev, and Aykhan Israfilov. Police claimed to discover 3.9 grams of methamphetamine, allegedly for sale; however, the search took place without independent witnesses, and the only evidence linking him to the substance was the police search protocol.

Orujov consistently maintained that the drugs were planted in retaliation for his repeated complaints to the State Labour Inspectorate against his former employer (ATEF Group) regarding unpaid wages. He reported physical abuse, threats against his relatives, and coercion during detention. The authorities ignored all allegations of ill-treatment, refused to examine surveillance footage, denied defence motions, and relied solely on police testimony and a state-controlled forensic report confirming only the nature of the substance—not possession.

His trial, beginning in December 2024, was marked by procedural violations, denial of due process, and a complete absence of credible evidence. The verdict reflects the systemic use of fabricated drug charges to suppress grassroots labour organising, mirroring tactics used against independent media and civil society since late 2023.

International human rights organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have condemned the charges as politically motivated and part of Azerbaijan’s widening repression of independent civic actors.

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