Human Rights Defender Faces Criminal Complaint

Member of the Bar Association Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Activist

Fikrat Jafarli, head of the Center for the Investigation of Torture, has been officially recognized as an accused person in a private criminal complaint filed by Elvin Aliyev, a member of the Disciplinary Commission of the Bar Association and a practicing lawyer.

The information was announced via the Center’s official Facebook page.

On July 7, the Binaqadi District Court held a preliminary hearing chaired by Judge Zamiq Baghirov, during which a decision was made to accept Elvin Aliyev’s complaint for further proceedings.

Lawyer Elvin Aliyev claims that Fikrat Jafarli spread defamatory statements about him, which allegedly damaged his professional reputation.

Aliyev is demanding that Jafarli be held criminally liable under Article 147.1 of the Criminal Code (defamation).

The complaint stems from a Facebook post by the Center for the Investigation of Torture, which publicized a complaint made by Elvin Allahverdiyev, a prisoner who accused his former lawyer — Elvin Aliyev — of taking 10,500 AZN, failing to achieve promised legal outcomes, and later exhibiting threatening behavior.

Fikrat Jafarli stated that the published content does not reflect his personal opinion but was shared based on a journalist’s social media post, which referenced the prisoner’s letter to the President of Azerbaijan.

“We only shared the prisoner’s appeal, as posted by a journalist. Why are we being prosecuted and brought to court for this?” Jafarli asked.

He described the lawsuit and his recognition as an accused person as a politically motivated order, asserting that he is being targeted for criticizing the Bar Association.

At the preliminary hearing, the court-appointed defense lawyer refused to support Jafarli’s position and left the issue of whether to proceed with the complaint to the court’s discretion — a stance that drew criticism from the human rights defender.

The trial has been scheduled for July 14.

In a public statement via Facebook, Fikrat Jafarli appealed to the public, state institutions, international organizations, and the diplomatic community, saying:

“This lawsuit is part of a political order aimed at silencing me as a human rights defender and shutting down the Center for the Investigation of Torture.

The Center works to defend human rights and fundamental freedoms, supports victims of violations, and monitors trials of politically persecuted individuals. Each year, we provide legal assistance to hundreds of vulnerable people and raise their cases before state authorities.”

Under Article 147.1 of the Criminal Code, penalties for defamation may include fines, community service, corrective labor, or up to six months of imprisonment.