Updates on Political Prisoners: Sentences and Ongoing Trials
On December 10, 2023, the Baku Court on Grave Crimes sentenced activist Ilhamiz Guliyev to three years in prison. Guliyev was arrested in December 2023 and accused of illegal drug possession. Guliyev denies the allegations, claiming the case was fabricated in retaliation for his whistleblowing activities – criticism of police misconduct and publicly exposing abuses by law enforcement authorities.
On December 20, Guliyev reported facing mistreatment and intimidation after speaking of poor conditions at the prison. According to Guliyev, there is no heating in prison cells forcing prisoners to sleep in their jackets. After raising these concerns, he was reportedly threatened by Major Ramin Akperov. In response, Guliyev’s mother filed a complaint with the ombudsman’s office and the Ministry of Justice. The Penitentiary Service denied the allegations.
On December 23, the trial in the case of activist Bakhtiyar Hajiyev continued. Hajiyev reported a breach of confidentiality in his communications with his lawyer, claiming authorities’ interference with his documents. Hajiyev was arrested in December 2022 on charges of hooliganism and disrespecting court orders. He was later accused of several economic and financial crimes, including smuggling, forgery, misappropriation of grants, illegal entrepreneurship, and money laundering. The trial began in February 2023 and was postponed several times, extending the activist’s pretrial detention. Throughout his trial, Hajiyev has called the charges fabricated, based on falsified documents, inauthentic judicial proceedings, and politically motivated. He has also named prosecutor Eldar Hamza as involved in fabricating his case. Hamza is on a sanctions list submitted to the U.S. Congress. Hajiyev’s arrest has been widely criticized as retaliation for his activism, particularly his campaigns for human rights and government accountability. International human rights organizations have labeled him a political prisoner, calling for a fair trial and the dropping of all charges leveled against the activist.
In another ongoing trial of journalist Teymur Karimov, the prosecutor requested a nine-year sentence on bogus charges of extortion by threat. Karimov was detained in December 2023 and has denied the charges, calling them fabricated, attributing his arrest as a retaliation for his journalistic work. On December 28, Karimov was sentenced to eight years. International organizations have highlighted due process violations and expressed concern over pressure exerted on the judiciary. Karimov is also considered a political prisoner, with watchdog groups emphasizing the lack of credible evidence to support the charges.
On December 27, the pre-trial detention period of 7 people involved in the “Toplum TV case” was extended for another 3 months by the Khatai District Court. The decision applies to Akif Gurbanov, speaker of the III Republic Platform; Ruslan Izzetli, founding member; Alasgar Mammadli, co-founder of Toplum TV; Mushfig Jabbar, video editor; and employees of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives, Ali Zeynal, Ilkin Amrahov, and Ramil Babayev. — The lawyers attending the trial said their defendants were interrupted on multiple occasions when making their statements.