{"id":30740,"date":"2025-05-27T08:15:57","date_gmt":"2025-05-27T08:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/?p=30740"},"modified":"2025-05-27T08:15:58","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T08:15:58","slug":"crackdown-on-independent-media-letters-from-prison-highlight-unyielding-resolve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/news-feed\/crackdown-on-independent-media-letters-from-prison-highlight-unyielding-resolve\/","title":{"rendered":"Crackdown on Independent Media: Letters from Prison Highlight Unyielding Resolve"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As Azerbaijan moves to consolidate its post-Karabakh sovereignty, the state\u2019s pressure on independent media and civil society figures has intensified. Two open letters\u2014one from media law expert and Toplum TV<\/em> co-founder Alasgar Mammadli<\/strong>, and another from Akif Qurbanov<\/strong>, head of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives<\/em> and spokesperson for the Third Republic Platform<\/em>\u2014offer a rare glimpse into the personal toll of these measures and the unbroken spirit of those targeted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThis Is Not a Solution\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

From his 4-square-meter cell in the Kurdakhani Detention Center, Alasgar Mammadli<\/strong> marked his birthday on May 24, 2025<\/strong>, with a letter lamenting that, \u201cFor the second year in a row, I am spending my birthday in detention\u2014despite having committed no crime and with no court verdict against me.\u201d He describes this ordeal as the \u201cprice\u201d of over 30 years he has devoted to defending media freedom, journalistic professionalism, and safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mammadli decries the imprisonment of dozens of colleagues\u2014journalists, civil society activists, and human rights defenders\u2014torn from their families and workplaces on \u201cillegal, baseless, and fabricated charges.\u201d He writes that the authorities have neither granted him house arrest nor allowed necessary medical treatment, despite serious health issues and pending surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He draws strength from unlikely encounters in the prison corridors: \u201cThe proud, unbroken stance of Sevinc, Nargiz, and Elnara\u2014who embrace me and show their sorrow when we cross paths\u2014gives me moral fortitude.\u201d Yet he urges decision-makers to see that jailing those who adhere to journalistic principles \u201cis not a solution, nor can it ever be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mammadli recalls that, thanks to unity and solidarity, Azerbaijan resolved a 30-year conflict in Karabakh. \u201cIn a moment when social reconciliation and humanism are needed, it is wrong to slander, stigmatize, imprison, and isolate people simply for their professionalism, their principles, or their civil society contributions,\u201d he argues. He concludes by thanking everyone who has sent birthday wishes and solidarity during his detention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cHe Has \u2018Earned\u2019 Their Wrath Through Integrity\u201d<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Shortly after Mammadli\u2019s letter was published, Akif Qurbanov<\/strong> sent his own birthday greetings to the imprisoned media expert. Qurbanov emphasizes that Mammadli\u2019s \u201chonesty, integrity, and refusal to submit to anything but the law\u201d are precisely why the authorities have shown him such \u201ccruelty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the leader of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives<\/em> and speaker for the Third Republic Platform<\/em>, Qurbanov appeals to Mammadli\u2019s decades of service: \u201cThere is hardly a single media outlet or legal community in which someone was not once his student or someone he helped shape.\u201d He notes that even those now detained on \u201ctrumped-up charges\u201d benefited from Mammadli\u2019s guidance \u201cboth as a teacher and as a friend.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Qurbanov praises Mammadli\u2019s unwavering defense of the oppressed: \u201cHe has truly wielded the pickaxe in the fight to establish and protect media freedom.\u201d Despite Mammadli\u2019s firm principles, \u201che remains gentle in nature, always ready to help, and never lacking in empathy.\u201d Qurbanov warns the authorities that \u201cevery act of cruelty\u2026only strengthens our determination.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He calls on \u201cgrateful and conscientious citizens\u201d to recognize that \u201cpeople like Alasgar are candles that burn themselves to bring light into society\u2019s darkness.\u201d Qurbanov urges immediate dialogue and a \u201cnew, clean page\u201d in media policy, reaffirming that \u201ctruth, justice, struggle, freedom, and rights\u201d remain alive in Azerbaijan because of champions like Mammadli.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Broader Context and International Response<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Alasgar Mammadli<\/strong> was arrested on March 8, 2024<\/strong>, as part of the \u201cToplum TV case.\u201d Ten individuals\u2014including journalists Mushfiq Jabbar and Farid Ismayilov; Akif Qurbanov himself; Ruslan Izzatli of the Third Republic Platform; and colleagues from the Institute for Democratic Initiatives\u2014face initial smuggling charges under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code, with later, more severe allegations added in January 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While some defendants, such as Shahnaz Beylergizi, have been placed under house arrest or police supervision, key figures remain behind bars. Toplum TV<\/em> has called these detentions \u201cpressure on independent media,\u201d and numerous local and international organizations have designated the detained as political prisoners, demanding their immediate release.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Azerbaijan moves to consolidate its post-Karabakh sovereignty, the state\u2019s pressure on independent media and civil society figures has intensified. Two open letters\u2014one from media law expert and Toplum TV co-founder Alasgar Mammadli, and another from Akif Qurbanov, head of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives and spokesperson for the Third Republic Platform\u2014offer a rare glimpse […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":30233,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[1047],"class_list":["post-30740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-feed","tag-editor"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30740"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30740\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30741,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30740\/revisions\/30741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.irfs.org\/az\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}