Intensified Suppression of Opposition Views Persists in Azerbaijan Following COP29 Conference
Azerbaijani authorities have reportedly arrested human rights activist Rufat Safarov, the director of Defense Line, on charges of fraud and hooliganism. According to friends and relatives, the arrest occurred on December 3, dismantling one of the last remaining human rights organizations in the country.
Safarov was expected to travel to the United States later in December to accept a Global Human Rights Defender Award from Secretary of State Anthony Blinken. In a communications relayed via his associates and shared on social media, Safarov described the accusations levied against him as baseless and defamatory, linking them to his human rights activities. He expressed his commitment to advocating for political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, urging the public to pay closer attention to their plight.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that the arrest was due to a conflict involving a real estate dispute with another individual. Safarov's mother refuted this claim, asserting that her son has no rights to any land. The detention, according to Safarov's father, Eldar Sabiroğlu, was aligning with a strategic timing to prevent Safarov from leaving for the US.
In 2016, Safarov was arrested on charges of bribery and served a nine-year prison sentence. However, he was released under a presidential amnesty in 2019.
The United States State Department expressed concern over Safarov's case, emphasizing the importance of allowing human rights defenders to carry out their work without interference. Spokesman Vedant Patel called on Azerbaijan to cease its crackdown on civil society, including human rights defenders and journalists, and release all those unjustly detained.
The arrest of Safarov follows a series of detentions and fines targeting the opposition Popular Front Party in late November and early December. Three prominent figures from the party were arrested separately for administrative offenses, while party leader Ali Karimli was fined 1,500 manats (approximately $880) for slander, following a court ruling. Additionally, police broke up a rally in support of Karimli outside the courthouse, with several protesters receiving administrative detention and fines.
- The arrest of Rufat Safarov, a human rights activist, has raised concerns in the realm of general news and politics, particularly regarding Azerbaijan's treatment of civil society.
- Despite the Ministry of Internal Affairs' claims that Safarov's arrest was due to a real estate dispute, his family and associates believe his detention is strategically timed to prevent him from accepting a Global Human Rights Defender Award in the United States.
- Safarov's Case, entwined with war-and-conflicts, crime-and-justice, and science, with his past arrests on charges of bribery and fraud, presents an opportunity for the international community to discuss and address the need for fair treatment of human rights defenders in Azerbaijan.
