26-05-2025
UN experts urge release of Azerbaijani rights defender
GENEVA: Four UN special rapporteurs on Monday demanded the release of Azerbaijani rights defender and climate advocate Anar Mammadli, who has been in detention for more than a was detained on April 29, 2024. His arrest was one of a series which critics said undermined Azerbaijan's credibility as a host of the United Nations COP29 climate change conference in November last chaired the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center, which reported irregularities during the February 2024 presidential elections in the tightly controlled, oil-rich arrest also came after he participated in events at the UN Human Rights Council, the special rapporteurs said in a statement.'Defending human rights should never be considered a crime,' the experts said.'There are serious concerns that Mammadli's detention and prosecution may be in retaliation for his human rights work and his engagement with UN mechanisms,' they risks up to eight years behind bars on smuggling charges, which rights groups claim are bogus.'Civic participation, independent election monitoring, and cooperation with international mechanisms are the foundation of democratic societies,' the experts said.'Criminalizing these activities undermines the rule of law.'The statement was issued by the special rapporteurs on human rights defenders, on freedom of peaceful assembly, the right to freedom of opinion and on called on Azerbaijan to respect due process, guarantee Mammadli's fundamental rights and provide him with appropriate medical also urged Baku to end all forms of intimidation against rights special rapporteurs are independent experts appointed by the Human Rights Council to report their findings. They do not speak for the United Nations itself.
