Radio Free Europe Calls for Release of Its Journalist from Azerbaijani Prison

The head of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty called for the release of Farid Mehralizadeh, a journalist and collaborator of this media outlet, in Azerbaijan. Steven Kapes described the detention of this journalist as 'unjust' in a statement on Thursday, November 1, stating, 'We are deeply concerned about his continued imprisonment on baseless charges.' Mr. Kapes further noted that five months have passed since the journalist's detention, saying, 'We demand his immediate release so he can return home to his wife and newborn daughter.' Farid Mehralizadeh, a collaborator of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was arrested on June 2 this year on charges related to 'smuggling goods.' Since then, additional charges including 'illegal entrepreneurship,' 'organized smuggling,' 'tax evasion,' and 'forgery' have been added to his case. Despite Mr. Mehralizadeh denying all these charges, his detention has been extended until December 20 of this year. Meanwhile, Azerbaijani officials have claimed that there is no political motive behind Farid Mehralizadeh's detention and that no one in this country is arrested for political reasons. However, human rights organizations state that in the past year, about 20 journalists and civil activists have been detained on similar charges, many of whom collaborated with 'Media Tools,' an independent news outlet in Azerbaijan. Human rights organizations estimate that there are currently at least 300 political prisoners in Azerbaijani prisons who are critics of the government of Ilham Aliyev, the president of this country. Mr. Aliyev has faced accusations of suppressing dissent since coming to power after the death of his father, Heydar Aliyev, in 2003, including the detention of journalists, opposition figures, and civil society activists.