Anar Mammadli’s state of health has deteriorated considerably in prison. The authorities are refusing to provide the human rights activist and climate campaigner with the necessary medical care. He has been in prison since 29 April 2024 on trumped-up charges and must be released immediately and unconditionally.
The Situation
Human rights defender Anar Mammadli is still being arbitrarily detained and is not receiving adequate medical care in prison. According to his lawyers, his health has deteriorated in detention. His arthritis is said to have worsened and he repeatedly suffers from stomach cramps and headaches. He also has bronchitis symptoms such as shortness of breath and a persistent cough. Many of these health problems began in 2014, when Anar Mammadli was first arbitrarily detained, and have now worsened during his recent detention.
Anar Mammadli, who is campaigning for human rights and environmental justice in connection with the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) to be held in the Azerbaijani capital Baku in November 2024, was arrested on 29 April 2024. He was stopped on the street by unidentified masked men and driven away in a black vehicle. According to family members, the police then searched his house and planted money in it. He is now being held in custody on fabricated charges of ‘conspiracy to illegally import money’ under section 206.3.2 of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code. If convicted, he faces up to eight years in prison.
On 17th and 25th October, Anar Mammadli underwent blood tests and stomach tests at the prison clinic. However, he was not informed of the results of the examination. The prison authorities have not yet had him thoroughly examined or provided him with the necessary treatment, despite repeated requests from his lawyer.
Stand up for the human rights defender and environmentalist Anar Mammadli!
Link to action (german): Website of Amnesty International
Background information
Anar Mammadli is a human rights defender and director of the Centre for Election Observation and Democracy Studies. He is a co-founder of ‘Climate of Justice’, a newly established group working to promote civil society engagement and environmental justice in the context of the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), which will take place in Baku in November 2024. He was one of the first activists in Azerbaijan to link respect for human rights with climate justice and was actively involved in international lobbying at the UN Human Rights Council and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
On 29 April 2024, Anar Mammadli was on his way to pick up his child from kindergarten when he was stopped by unidentified masked men and driven away in a black vehicle. According to family members, the police then searched Anar Mammadli’s house and allegedly planted money on him. The Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed his arrest and his sister reported that he is officially suspected of ‘conspiracy to illegally import money’ under section 206.3.2 of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code.
He was reportedly denied access to his lawyer during the night in a temporary detention centre in Baku. On 30 April 2024, the Khatai District Court in Baku decided to keep him in pre-trial detention until the end of August 2024. On 6 May, the Court of Appeal in Baku considered an appeal against Anar Mammadli’s detention, but rejected it.
On 7 October, Anar Mammadli submitted a handwritten request to be examined in a private civilian clinic. Attached was an official request from his lawyers, and the letter was sent to the Supreme Medical Department of the Ministry of Justice, the penitentiary authorities, the Ministry of the Interior and the Azerbaijani Human Rights Commissioner.
Anar Mammadli was then medically examined in the detention centre. The Human Rights Commissioner has asked the authorities for the results. Anar Mammadli and his legal representatives have not yet been informed of the results of the examination.
In 2014, Anar Mammadli was recognised by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience when he was sentenced to five and a half years in prison on trumped-up charges related to tax evasion, illegal entrepreneurship and abuse of office. During his time in prison, he received the Václav Havel Human Rights Award from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for his outstanding contributions to civil society through the defence of human rights.
The European Court of Human Rights found that the imprisonment of Anar Mammadli in 2013 constituted a violation of the European Convention on Human Rights. However, the Azerbaijani authorities have not yet fully implemented the judgement; his conviction has not been reversed and his civil and political rights have not been fully restored.
Anar Mammadli was pardoned in 2016, but has since been subject to repeated attacks by the authorities and pro-government media, which have intensified in the run-up to COP29.
The current imprisonment of Anar Mammadli is part of a pattern of abuse of the criminal justice system aimed at silencing critics of the government, including human rights activists and journalists. Those affected include economist Gubad Ibadoghlu, who campaigns against corruption, as well as Akif Gurbanov, board member of the opposition group Third Republic Platform, and Alasgar Mammadli, founder of the independent news channel Toplum TV. In addition, more than 20 journalists are in custody, including journalists and media professionals from Abzas Media, Toplum TV and Kanal 13.