Ali Malikov, an Azerbaijani queer rights activist and OC Media contributor, along with their transgender Azerbaijani friend, have been detained in Turkey after joining a feminist demonstration. They could face deportation from the country.

Ali Malikov and their friend Parvin Alakbar were detained in Istanbul after taking part in a march commemorating the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November.

Alex Shah, an Azerbaijani transgender activist and journalist, told OC Media that nearly 170 people were detained during that protest, after which Turkish nationals were released while non-Turkish people remained in detention.

Shah denied that Malikov and Alakbar were involved in any kind of radical protest against the government, but rather ‘simply participated in a protest linked to an internationally recognised day, aiming to prevent violence against women’. 

‘Defending women’s rights is not a crime’, Shah told OC Media. 

Following their detention at the protest, Shah said Malikov and Alakbar were sent to the Kocaeli Removal Centre, a repatriation camp, to await a deportation hearing.

Azerbaijani journalist Ulviyya Ali told OC Media that lawyers were only able to reach Malikov over 30 hours after the initial arrest.

According to Shah, Malikov and Alakbar’s lawyer said the pair were unable to contact or see their friends while in detention, and were denied vegetarian meals. The lawyer also said that Malikov was denied access to their medication because they did not have a prescription.

Shah added that both Malikov and Alakbar were handcuffed and beaten by police in the bus transporting them to the detention centre.

According to queer Azerbaijani activist Vahid Ali, the condition of the detention centre where Malikov and Alakbar are being held ‘was bad’ and that the pair ‘slept in mud and dirt’. 

‘Parvin reported abuse towards him, he was beaten up [...] when asked about ill-treatment, again, they didn’t say anything because of fear of being treated badly again, according to friends. They might face further harassment for their activism’, Ali told OC Media. 

Shah believed that the risk of Malikov’s deportation was ‘low’ compared to Alakbar, because Malikov is registered as a student in Turkey and has a residence permit, while Alakbar does not. 

However, despite being a resident of Turkey, Malikov has expressed concern about his potential deportation given his background as a queer rights activist. Shah told OC Media that returning to Azerbaijan would be ‘challenging, as the country currently oppresses free voices and to continue activism inside Azerbaijan is too difficult and carries the risk of detention’.

Shah told OC Media that should the court rule to deport the two Azerbaijani citizens, they would be asked to leave Turkey within a month, but that they do not necessarily have to return to Azerbaijan.

Ali told OC Media that activists have been trying to publicise the situation, adding that the situation in Azerbaijan is even worse for queer people. 

‘Media has been spreading fears of and hatred towards the queer community for years now’, Vahid Ali said. 

According to Shah, Malikov and Alakbar are still Azerbaijani citizens, and the government in Baku has an obligation to defend them through diplomatic channels, as they would with any other citizen. 

‘However, the Azerbaijani government is currently not interested in defending its transgender citizens’, Shah noted.