Azerbaijani journalist complains about ban to leave the country

Agil Makhmudov, an opposition activist and the editor-in-chief of the "hefteaz.info" website, said that border guards did not let him leave Azerbaijan, citing a police ban. There are no grounds for such a ban, Makhmudov asserts.

According to Agil Makhmudov, who is also a member of the "Musavat" Party, he was detained this morning at the "Synyg Korpyu" border checkpoint while trying to leave for Georgia. "Border guards detained me, referring to the indication of 'Stop' introduced by the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA). I can't even guess why they had imposed the ban. I don't figure in any criminal cases; I have no un-cancelled criminal record and no outstanding debts on loans or fines. Nevertheless, I was taken to a police station, where they kept me for eight hours. A request was sent to the MIA, and the answer came that the 'Stop' was introduced by the Goichay ROVD (District Interior Division) because of the 20-day-long administrative arrest, to which I was sentenced after a picket last year," Makhmudov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Agil Makhmudov insists that the arrest itself was unlawful; however, in any case, the served punishment cannot be the reason for the travel ban. "I'll seek abolition of the ban," said Makhmudov.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on July 31, 2019 at 04:26 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.