Mr Alasgar Mammadli is a prominent lawyer specialising in media rights.

Mr Mammadli was born on May 24, 1968, in the Guzanli village of Aghdam district in the family of a teacher. In 1985, he graduated from the secondary school of Guzanli settlement, Aghdam region. In 1991, he entered the Faculty of Law of Istanbul University and graduated there in 1996. From 1999 to 2001, he received a master’s in law and management from the Turkish and Middle East Academy of Administration (TODAIE) in Ankara. He is married. He is the father of two children.

After completing a one-year course at the Istanbul Bar Association, Mr Mammadli practised as a lawyer at the Heavy Criminal Court of Turkey. In 1994, he worked as a legal consultant in the private company “Ugur Avize LTD.” From 1996 to 1999, he worked as a commercial law consultant and foreign relations consultant in the same company. At the same time, in 1998-1999, he worked as a lawyer-consultant in the “Nationalist Movement” newspaper.

After returning to Azerbaijan in 2002-2005, he worked as a lawyer at Internews, an international humanitarian organisation that helps the development of mass media in the United States. Here, he conducted numerous training seminars on the legal protection of the press and the safety of journalists. During this period, Mr. Mammadli was one of the authors of the books “Journalist’s Legal Adviser,” “Teleradio Broadcasting Regulatory Boards,” “Legal Basis of Media Participation in Elections” and “Public Broadcasting in Azerbaijan.” Also, in 2004, he co-founded the Media Law Institute within the media project framework of the Internews.

Later, from 2004 to 2014, he worked as a lawyer and director at the International Research and Exchange Council (IREX) Azerbaijan, part of IREX. This international nonprofit organisation specialises in global education and development.

From 2002 to 2013, he conducted more than 200 training seminars dedicated to the legal education of journalists, media workers, and young lawyers at the Media Law Institute. From 2009 to 2013, the American Bar Association educated young lawyers in more than 40 training seminars conducted by the Legal Initiative in Central Europe and Eurasia (ABA-CEELI) and the DAI Foundation.

In February 2016, Mr Mammadli became one of the founders of the “Civil Society Platform,” along with well-known civil society figures, human rights defenders, and journalists (the Platform is now defunct). The Platform’s founders declared they would discuss Azerbaijan’s political and social discontents, conduct a detailed exchange of ideas, and deduce tangible recommendations.

That same year, Mr. Mammadli took on the role of legal founder for Toplum TV, another media outlet and a beacon of objective information. Toplum TV was dedicated to placing human rights, freedoms, and freedom of expression at the forefront of its operations, a mission that Mr. Mammadli was deeply committed to.

Since 2005, he has worked as an expert on media law for the OSCE, Council of Europe, and other regional and international institutions.

He is the author of dozens of books and scientific articles covering media law, election law, local self-government law, the right to access information, constitutional law, and human rights and freedoms. His articles have been published in local and foreign publications. He has also hosted hundreds of training sessions for lawyers and journalists.

The Office of the Prosecutor General (OPG) summoned Mr. Mammadli in 2014 in connection with the joint criminal case against international and local NGOs in Azerbaijan as a representative of the IREX Azerbaijan. The same year, the OPG searched its office and seized documents and electronic devices, and the local courts ordered it to freeze its bank accounts. IREX applied to the European Court of Human Rights concerning search and seizure and freeze of bank accounts. The Court found violations of Article 1 of Protocol 1 to the Convention and Article 8 of the Convention (International Research and Exchanges Board v. Azerbaijan, 7668/15, 2/03/2023).

The pro-governmental media regularly targeted Mr Mammadli, libelling him as a ‘wrongdoer,’ ‘puppet of Western states,’ and ‘sabotage.’ Since November 2023, these libelous allegations about him increased. Before his arrest, he prepared to sue relevant pro-governmental media organisations for the smear campaign. 

On 9 March 2024, the BMGPD officially charged Mr Mammadli with conspiracy to commit bulk cash smuggling under Section 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code and served him with an arraignment. According to the arraignment, Mr Mammadli was charged with the following:

1. Smuggling (conspired beforehand with co-conspirators)

a) acting with the intention of greed and the purpose of gaining illicit income, conspired beforehand with co-conspirators [their names were mentioned above] and other persons (qeyriləri) whose identities were sought under preliminary investigation, unlawfully to transport a significant amount (xeyli miqdarda) of foreign currency to [Azerbaijan];

b) committed bulk cash smuggling that obtained currency in foreign countries, whose source is unknown to the preliminary investigation currently, at different dates, including 2023-2024, upon returning from various foreign trips to [Azerbaijan], either by evading customs control or misusing fraudulent documents or customs identification means or violating financial reporting requirements (either not declaring or wrongly declaring);

c) With other co-conspirators, they divided these among themselves and conducted various financial transactions, thus gaining considerable [illicit] income totalling 145342,18 AZN.

Legal Proceedings

On 09 March 2024, the prosecution authorities applied to the Khatai District Court to remand Mr Mammadli in custody, citing the gravity of the offences and the risk of the his absconding or obstructing the investigation. By a decision of 8 March 2024, the Khatai District Court ordered Mr Mammadli’s remand in custody for four months (until 6 July 2024), endorsing the remand application.

Mr Mammadli appealed against the detention order. On 15 March 2024, the Baku Appeal Court dismissed the appeal.

The prosecution applied to the Khatai District Court requesting an extension of the his remand in custody. The reasoning for the extension application was the same reasoning of the remand application and added an extension of the preliminary investigation period including potential new charges against Mr Mammadli.

On 04 July 2024, the Khatai District Court granted an extension of the remand in custody application, citing, inter alia, potential new charges against Mr Mammadli for four months by 06 October 2024 (Annex 13).

Mr Mammadli appealed the district court’s extension order, relying on the absence of an objective basis for the extension. On 11 July 2024, the Baku Appeal Court dismissed the appeal, endorsing the reasoning of the first-instance court.