Written declaration No. 564 | Doc. 13409 | 29 January 2014

Free Azerbaijan's Human Rights Defender and Election Observer Anar Mammadli

Signatories: Ms Tina ACKETOFT, Sweden, ALDE ; Mr Ferdinando AIELLO, Italy, SOC ; Mr Mohammed AMEUR, Morocco ; Mr Volodymyr ARIEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Lennart AXELSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Ms Marieluise BECK, Germany, ALDE ; Mr Levan BERDZENISHVILI, Georgia, ALDE ; Mr Robert BIEDROŃ, Poland, SOC ; Mr Philippe BIES, France, SOC ; Ms Sílvia Eloïsa BONET PEROT, Andorra, SOC ; Ms Marjolaine BOUTIN-SWEET, Canada ; Ms Lolita ČIGĀNE, Latvia, EPP/CD ; Mr Boriss CILEVIČS, Latvia, SOC ; Ms Celeste COSTANTINO, Italy, SOC ; Mr Geraint DAVIES, United Kingdom, SOC ; Mr Arcadio DÍAZ TEJERA, Spain, SOC ; Ms Doris FIALA, Switzerland, ALDE ; Ms Ute FINCKH-KRÄMER, Germany, SOC ; Mr Gvozden Srećko FLEGO, Croatia, SOC ; Mr Martin FRONC, Slovak Republic, EPP/CD ; Ms Maria GIANNAKAKI, Greece, SOC ; Mr Sandro GOZI, Italy, SOC ; Mr Andreas GROSS, Switzerland, SOC ; Mr Jonas GUNNARSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Kent HÄRSTEDT, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Martin HENRIKSEN, Denmark, EDG ; Mr Andres HERKEL, Estonia, EPP/CD ; Mr Andrej HUNKO, Germany, UEL ; Mr Mogens JENSEN, Denmark, SOC ; Mr Michael Aastrup JENSEN, Denmark, ALDE ; Mr Josip JURATOVIC, Germany, SOC ; Ms Tinatin KHIDASHELI, Georgia, ALDE ; Mr Tiny KOX, Netherlands, UEL ; Ms Athina KYRIAKIDOU, Cyprus, SOC ; Ms Sophie LØHDE, Denmark, ALDE ; Ms Lone LOKLINDT, Denmark, ALDE ; Ms Kerstin LUNDGREN, Sweden, ALDE ; Ms Vesna MARJANOVIĆ, Serbia, SOC ; Ms Liliane MAURY PASQUIER, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Ermira MEHMETI DEVAJA, ''The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia'', SOC ; Ms Melita MULIĆ, Croatia, SOC ; Mr Nicos NICOLAIDES, Cyprus, SOC ; Ms Judith OEHRI, Liechtenstein, ALDE ; Ms Carina OHLSSON, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Pieter OMTZIGT, Netherlands, EPP/CD ; Mr Bernard PASQUIER, Monaco, ALDE ; Ms Marietta de POURBAIX-LUNDIN, Sweden, EPP/CD ; Mr Luc RECORDON, Switzerland, SOC ; Mr Aleksandrs SAKOVSKIS, Latvia, SOC ; Mr Kimmo SASI, Finland, EPP/CD ; Mr Nikolaus SCHERAK, Austria, ALDE ; Mr Andriy SHEVCHENKO, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Oleksandr SHEVCHENKO, Ukraine, NR ; Mr Serhiy SOBOLEV, Ukraine, EPP/CD ; Mr Christoph STRÄSSER, Germany, SOC ; Mr Björn von SYDOW, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Snorre Serigstad VALEN, Norway, UEL ; Mr Nikolaj VILLUMSEN, Denmark, UEL ; Mr Eric VORUZ, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Nataša VUČKOVIĆ, Serbia, SOC ; Ms Gisela WURM, Austria, SOC

This written declaration commits only those who have signed it.

Anar Mammadli is a highly respected human rights defender who has been co-operating with international institutions, among them the Council of Europe and its rapporteurs for monitoring of Azerbaijan. His organization has conducted country-wide, independent citizens’ election observation in Azerbaijan since 2001. Following the October 9, 2013 Presidential elections EMDS has published critical reports on the electoral process. EMDS is a member of the European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE), to which Anar Mammadli was elected a member of the board on December 10th 2013.

We call on the Azerbaijani authorities to guarantee a fair and transparent trial for Anar Mammadli, in full compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights. Furthermore, we urge to immediately release him from pre-trial detention. Anar Mammadli has been fully co-operative during the investigations against EMDS and himself, and we consider that no justification for the detention has been given.