Azerbaijan: Baku Judge Denies Motion to Set Jailed Youth Activists Free

After spending nearly two months in pre-trial detention in Azerbaijan, two youth activists, Emin Milli and Adnan Hajizade, appeared in a Baku courtroom on September 4. The presiding judge rejected a variety of defense motions, including one to have the charges dropped and another to permit media coverage of the proceedings. A motion to set the defendants free on bail for the duration of their trial was also denied.

Twenty-six-year-old Hajizade, a co-founder of the OL (To Be) youth movement, and 30-year-old Milli, a co-founder of the Alumni Network, were arrested on July 8 for hooliganism after they allegedly started a brawl in a Baku cafe. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive]. The two reject the charges and claim instead that they themselves were the victims of an assault. In late August the prosecutors added an additional charge: intentional infliction of minor bodily harm. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archive].

The scene at the Sabail District Court on September 4 bordered on chaotic, as dozens of observers struggled to secure a seat in the relatively cramped public gallery. Court officers ended up turning many people away. Journalists in possession of video or audio recording devices, or wearing a press pass, were barred from entering.

The defendants were brought into the courtroom in handcuffs and surrounded by half a dozen guards. Like all post-Soviet courtrooms, they were placed in a barred cage for the duration of the hearing.

Presiding Judge Araz Huseynov justified his decision to bar media coverage of the trial by saying he sought to protect the victims' privacy and confidential information. The judge also ruled that the defendants - who appeared in good health and high spirits - would remain in custody, despite the lack of any previous criminal record, or any visible intent to flee.

Domestic and international human rights advocates quickly criticized the court's rulings. Although courts may limit access to the media in special circumstances, privacy concerns are not "cart blanche to bar the media," said Rachel Denber, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia division. "[T]here are strong concerns about the independence of the judiciary in Azerbaijan, and in light of this the decision to close the trial is very worrisome," she adds. The trial for Milli and Hajizade is scheduled to resume on September 16.

The case has generated widespread attention in recent weeks, with rallies in support of Milli and Hajizade staged outside Azerbaijan's embassies in Washington, DC, and London. Facebook pages, meanwhile, have attracted thousands of followers who have expressed solidarity with the jailed duo.

"Emin and Adnan have simply been extraordinarily visible and committed in the activities they have been undertaking" and "their message has always been positive and creative, striking a chord with the well-connected, foreign-educated people as well as the international community in Baku," says Bart Woord, secretary general of the London-based International Federation of Liberal Youth (IFLY), which works on youth human rights issues.

During a recess amid the September 4 proceedings, the courtroom took on the air of a long-awaited reunion, as friends and family took the chance to talk with the imprisoned men. The defendants smiled and joked with friends, relatives, and colleagues.

Many domestic and international rights' groups claim the arrests and detention of Hajizade and Milli have little to do with the early July altercation, and is instead designed to help stifle political dissent in Azerbaijan. Both young men were educated overseas and have been outspoken in their criticism of government policies. "The case against Hajizade and Milli raises deeply troubling questions about the rule of law in Azerbaijan," said Jennifer Windsor, Freedom House executive director, in a September 2 statement. "This case fits a disturbing pattern under which independent journalists and others seeking to express themselves end up in the criminal justice system."

The Azerbaijan government strongly rejects the notion that this case has political overtones. "It is a pity that the West is exaggerating the event," Novruz Mammadov, head of the International Department of the Presidential Administration told the Turan News Service. Acknowledging the multiple appeals to free the defendants, Mammadov added, "we do not want pressure on us, and we reject attempts to misuse the situation."