23:55, 7 March 2019

Azerbaijani activist arrested for 15 days

A police car. Photo: REUTERS/David Mdzinarishvili

A court decided to arrest Nidjat Abdullazade, an activist of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), under the article on failure to obey to the police. PFPA members treat the charge as politically motivated.

Nidjat Abdullazade was detained on March 6, after a trial in the case against other activists, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was informed by Ilkham Gusein, a member of the PFPA Presidium.

On March 6, in Baku, the court dismissed complaints about 15-days arrests for three PFPA activists, including Sagif Gurbanov, Magerram Rzaev, and Tofiq Mamedov. The court found them guilty of disobeying the police.

"There was no offense. It is all fabricated. Recently, the authorities have been painfully reacting even to activists coming to trials," said the PFPA member.

PFPA leader Ali Kerimli believes that Nidjat Abdullazade was arrested for political reasons. "This is already the 46th case of the arrest of our activists over the past two months ... The authorities fear an increase in citizens' activities, and not unreasonably. However, the arrests of innocent people provoke even greater anger in society," said Ali Kerimli.

Since early 2019, a new trend has emerged in the policy of the authorities: the refusal of criminal proceedings and the widespread use of administrative arrests, notes Elshan Gasanov, the coordinator of the "Union for the Freedom of Political Prisoners of Azerbaijan" (UFPPA).

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 7, 2019 at 04:32 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medjid

Source: CK correspondent