Afghan Mukhtarli appeals to the Parliament of Georgia

Baku / 10.10.17 / Turan: The arrested journalist Afgan Mukhtarly appealed to the Georgian Parliament with request to create a commission to investigate his abduction in Tbilisi and transfer to Azerbaijan. "I do not have a criminal past. During my stay in Georgia, I did not violate its laws. I was kidnapped in Tbilisi and illegally transported through the border crossing to Lagodekhi and transferred to the Azerbaijani special services, "the journalist said.

He notes that the reason for his kidnapping and arrest was his journalistic investigations about corruption in Azerbaijan.

Mukhtarly notes that he always did investigative journalism, criticized the authorities of Georgia, the party of the parliamentary majority, the Georgian Dream. "My criticism bothered the Georgian government. My detention and illegal transfer to Azerbaijan was also beneficial to the government of Georgia," Mukhtarly writes.

Mukhtarli was kidnapped on May 29 in Tbilisi and brought to Azerbaijan, where he was charged under three Articles of the Criminal Code: 315 (resistance to a representative of the authority with the use of force), 318.1 (illegal border crossing) and 206.1 (smuggling). Afgan Mukhtarly denies the charges, saying at the trial that his arrest is a political order. -06D-