Accused Journalists of Abzas Media Secured Passes to Attend Trial of Their Colleagues

On December 28, the trial of Abzas Media began, with the prosecutor reading the indictment. At the start of the session at the Baku Serious Crimes Court, the accused, the chief editor of Abzas Media, Sevinc Vagifgizi, filed a motion to disqualify the court panel. She argued that the current composition of the judges could not conduct an impartial investigation, as two of the three judges had previously ruled on cases involving political prisoners.

In particular, the presiding judge, Rasim Sadikhov, had handed down a conviction against human rights defender Intigam Aliyev, which was later deemed unlawful by the European Court of Human Rights. Another judge, Novruz Kerimov, had previously worked in the security services and was also known for issuing sentences against political prisoners, Vagifgizi noted. “We do not want to be judged by people with questionable pasts,” she emphasized.

The accused Farid Mehralizade stated that he was dismissing the entire Azerbaijani judiciary, as it was not an independent branch of government. Other accused persons supported the motion. However, the motion was not considered.

Next, lawyer Shahla Humbatova requested that journalists be allowed to attend the trial, but court security stated there were no seats available in the courtroom. In response, the defendants demanded the removal of unauthorized individuals and insisted that their seats be given to journalists.

The director of Abzas Media, Ulvi Hasanli, stated that if journalists were not allowed into the courtroom, the defendants would refuse to participate in the proceedings. After persistent demands from lawyers and relatives of the detained, journalists were finally allowed into the room.

Lawyers  of Hafiz Babali, Elnara Gasimova, and Mohammed Kekalov petitioned for a change in the terms of detention and for the release of their clients from custody. However, the motions were rejected.

Lawyer Rovshana Rahimli, representing Nargiz Absalamova, requested that her client be held in decent conditions in the courtroom. She was brought into a cold, smoky room and kept there until the start of the trial. The judge promised to look into the matter.

Next, prosecutor Rauf Alyshov read the indictment. According to the investigation, Ulvi Hasanli, in violation of the NGO law, founded the unregistered Abzas Media in 2016 and represented himself as its founder and executive director.

Having created the website www.abzas.org and accounts on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, he presented the organization as a “free and professional media entity, operating legally.”

Hasanli and other individuals involved in the case “illegally received large sums of money from foreign donors under unregistered agreements.” These funds were brought into the country “illegally,” bypassing customs control and undeclared, engaging in “illegal entrepreneurial activities” and “evading taxes.”

The accused allegedly forged “fake” salary payment contracts. In total, the “organized group” is said to have received illegal income totaling 545,278.46 manat.

The defendants stated that they did not understand the charges and rejected them. Hasanli claimed that the real reason for their arrest was their investigations into corruption within Azerbaijan’s top political ranks.

He pointed out that the “40,000 euros” allegedly found in the Abzas Media office had been planted by the authorities. “I’ve crossed the border 50 times, and not once have I been caught with ‘contraband,’” Hasanli said.

“Journalists from Abzas Media, Toplum TV, and Meydan TV were arrested in groups on charges of ‘smuggling.’ How does customs work, and how did they miss so many ‘smugglers’? Let the head of the customs committee come to court and answer the questions,” Vagifgizi remarked. Elnara Gasimova stated that these accusations were directed at those who run the state, drawing applause in the courtroom.

Hafiz Babali said he considered the real “accused” to be those who were accusing journalists. “I’ve been in journalism for 35 years, and my presence here is a disgrace to the government,” Babali said. “We have not committed any crimes. There is an unofficial criminal code in the country under which we have committed a serious crime - it’s called freedom of expression,” said Farid Mehralizade.

Babali also pointed out that the court had been dragging out his civil lawsuit against the Qafqaz.info portal, which had slandered him. “Three months have passed since the linguistic expertise was ordered, but there is still no result,” he added.

The trial will continue on January 21. The trial was observed by a representative of the U.S. embassy. Notably, the journalists maintained their spirits and stated that they intended to expose the falsifications behind the criminal case against them.

*From November 2023 to January 2024, the leaders and staff of Abzas Media—Ulvi Hasanli, Sevinc Vagifgizi, Mohammed Kekalov, Nargiz Absalamova, and Elnara Gasimova—were arrested, along with investigative journalist and Turan news agency employee Hafiz Babali. In May, economist and Radio Azadliq employee Farid Mehralizade was arrested in connection with the same case.

Initially, they were accused under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code (smuggling by a group of individuals acting in collusion). However, from August 16 to 19, the charges were escalated to: Article 192.3.2 (illegal entrepreneurship with substantial income); Articles 193-1.3.1 and 193-1.3.2 (money laundering by an organized group); Article 206.4 (smuggling by an organized group); Articles 320.1 and 320.2 (forgery of documents and use of forged documents); and Article 213.2.1 (tax evasion by a group), all of which carry a penalty of up to 12 years in prison.

The journalists reject all charges, stating they are being persecuted for investigating corruption within the highest echelons of power in Azerbaijan.

Human rights defenders have recognized them as political prisoners. Many international journalism and human rights organizations have denounced the charges as politically motivated and repeatedly called for the release of the journalists.