In his defense speech at the Baku Court of Grave Crimes, Anar Mammadli, an Azerbaijani human rights activist and head of the Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center (EMDSC), claimed that the criminal prosecution was politically motivated, comparing it to Soviet repression.
His defense claims the case is retaliation for his human rights work. Mammadli is accused of smuggling, illegal entrepreneurship, money laundering, tax evasion, and document forgery. His lawyer argues that the case is fabricated and that there is no evidence.
The court previously rejected a motion for house arrest. International organizations and the US State Department called for the release of Mammadli, who was convicted and later pardoned in 2014.
Two years ago, Anar Mammadli was diagnosed with a herniated disc. Due to the lack of an orthopedic mattress, he suffers from severe pain. He also suffers from shortness of breath and asthma attacks.
