International labour movement launches campaign to free detained labour activists in Azerbaijan

LabourStart, an international labour news website, has launched a petition calling on Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to release several detained members of Azerbaijan’s Labour Desk Confederation of Trade Unions

The campaign and its petition were launched on 16 April.

The default message addressing Aliyev calls on him to release the chair of the union, Afiaddin Mammadov, and members Aykhan Israfilov, Elvin Mustafayev, and Mohyaddin Orujov.

‘The prosecution of these individuals undermines Azerbaijan’s international obligations to protect freedom of association and the right to organize, as outlined in ILO Conventions 87 and 98’, read the message.

‘We respectfully urge your government to release the imprisoned activists immediately and take meaningful steps toward respecting workers’ rights, democratic freedoms, and international legal standards,’ it continues.

Sara Rahimova, a labour rights activist, told OC Media that the campaign will continue for around three months.

‘Here, we invite everyone to join us and send emails to the presidential administration’s email address. The aim is to send more emails, ensure that the issue does not go unnoticed, and build public pressure. As a confederation, we demand the immediate release of the members and call on everyone to unite with us,’ Rahimova said.

Rahimova stated to OC Media that ‘these emails reflect the desire of thousands of people who want freedom for our comrades. We hope that these demands will not remain unanswered. These demands will also be more open to the public.’

As of Tuesday evening, the campaign had nearly garnered 2,300 signatories.

Afiaddin Mammadov was arrested in September 2023 and was sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of hooliganism and intentionally causing serious bodily harm to someone.

Aykhan Israfilov and Elvin Mustafayev were arrested on drug charges in August 2023. Both were sentenced to three years in prison in 2024, while Mohyaddin Orujov, who was detained in October 2023 also on drug charges, was sentenced to three years in prison in February.

Azerbaijani labour rights activist sentenced to 8 years in prison

Afiaddin Mammadov was convicted of intentionally causing serious bodily harm and hooliganism and sentenced to eight years in prison.

OC MediaAytan Farhadova