User:Crtew/Afgan Mukhtarli

Afgan Mukhtarli, (ca. 1975 –   ), an Azerbaijani journalist who was working at the time for the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project in Tbilisi, Georgia, was sentenced to six-years in prison on January 12, 2018 following an ongoing investigation into his alleged abduction. Mukhtarli conducted research and contributed to articles about the abuse of powers in the Defense Ministry and disappeared while investegating the Ilham Aliyev family business in Georgia.

Personal
Mukhtarli is a civil rights activist and an outspoken critic of the Azeri government. He was allegedly abducted by Georgian police while on an assignment and was handed over to the Azeri government. Mukhtarli resided in Georgia -- with his wife and 3-year-old daughter -- where he had been in self-imposed exile since 2015. The journalist was investigating what he speculated to be illegal business affairs of Azerbaijan's president at the time of his alleged disappearence. Mukhtarli claimed he was kidnapped by men in Georgian police uniforms who beat him, put a hood on him, put money in his pockets, and finally gave him to Azeri state security officers. Mukhtarli was later convicted of smuggling money, resisting border guards, and illegally crossing borders.

Career
Mukhtarli's professional work has been done under the employment of Meydan TV, the Institute for War and Peace Reporting specifically, as well as other media organizations. Muhktarli stated, “While I was in Georgia, I was studying the businesses of Ilham Aliyev. He has big assets in the tourism sphere in Georgia. He has several hotels and land plots in Georgia. He owns the Silk Way airline company and the Silk Way organization in Georgia. His main partner in Georgia is Bidzina Ivanishvili. I am a victim mainly of their business interests. I encountered problems when I touched upon this issue."

Notable works of journalism
Afgan Muhiktarli's investigative works exposed corruption in Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defense, and the extensive business networks of Azerbaijani diplomats and affiliates in neighboring Georgia. Muhktarli has gained followers and supporters and has quickly become a face for justice and liberty within Azerbaijan, Georgia, and surrounding countries.

Awards
The EaP CSF Steering Committee concluded that Afgan Mukhtarli has demonstrated extraordinary courage in journalism and outstanding achievement in the cause of freedom of speech in the Eastern Partnership region. The organization has awarded Muhktarli the 2017 EaP CSF Pavel Sheremet Journalism Award.

Context
Afgan Muhktarli's trial began on November 30, 2017 in the Belokansky region of Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani police claim Mukhtarli was in possession of 10,000 euros during the police search. Muhktarli disappeared in Tbilisi after living in Georgia for the last three years on May 29, 2017. The journalist's lawyer, Elchin Sadygov, stated that Muhktarli "was beaten, has a broken nose, bruises all over his head and right eye, and his rib may be broken," at the time of his alleged abduction. A court ultimately ruled to arrest him on May 31, 2017. The journalist is rejecting all charges against him. He is now serving time in an Azerbaijani prison.

Investigation
The case was first investigated by Georgia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, however, the controversial situation is now being reviewed the Chief Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia. Muhktarli fled to Georgia in January 2015 as a result of prosecution against him. He believes that the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office is prolonging the procedures on purpose. The First Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs who also serves as the head of Georgian police, Besik Amiranashvili, was dismissed from his post without any explanation ten days after the allegation about the involvement of Georgian police officers in the abduction surfaced. Next, the Chief of Georgian Counter Intelligence Agency and the Head of Georgia’s Border Police were dismissed from their posts for a temporary amount of time.

Impact
This case has caused issues for Georgia. Due to the controversy, a Resolution of the European Parliament has been placed on this case. Georgian authorities have to prove beyond all suspicion regarding the involvement of Georgian state agents in the forced disappearance of Afgan Muhktarli. No illegal acts can be committed in order to maintain a good relationship with Azerbaijan. Also, violations of the rights of a foreign citizen shows that Georgia’s current government is ready to violate the rule of law in the interest of a tyrant.

Reactions
Institutions like the EU Delegation in Tbilisi and the U.S. Embassy are demanding a clear and timely investigation into the details of the alleged abduction of Afgan Muhktarli. The European Parliament has passed a condemnation and has labeled the entire case as a "serious violation of human rights" and a "grave act of breach of law." The State Department said it was “disturbed by the reported abduction.

Georgian Prime Minster, Giorgi Kvirikashvili, called Mukhtarli's abduction a "serious failure that should not have happened."

Levan Asatiani, Amnesty International’s Campaigner on the South Caucasus, who is currently in Tbilisi stated, "This is a deeply sinister development in a country known for its long crackdown on journalists and human rights defenders. Afgan Mukhtarli must be immediately and unconditionally released and protected from torture and other ill-treatment. He is a prisoner of conscience detained solely for his work as a journalist.

Index's head of advocacy, Melody Patry, said “Georgia has long been perceived as a safe haven for Azerbaijani dissidents, but the disappearance of Afgan Mukhtarli and other incidents are deeply concerning.

Johann Bihr, head of RSF’s (Reporters Without Borders) Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk states, “The Georgian authorities must immediately explain what happened to Afgan Mukhtarli and provide security guarantees for the other Azerbaijani exiles in Georgia."

Afgan Mukhtarli's investigation, accusations, and abduction sparked controversy in the regions of Azerbaijan and Georgia. The suspicious circumstances of the journalist's case has caused a domino effect of allegations and questionable motives toward Azeri and Georgian governments from all of the world.