Azerbaijan

Open Letter Calling for the Immediate Release of Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu 

Updated on

Crude Accountability joins 240 organizations and individuals in signing a letter to authorities in Azerbaijan demanding the unconditional release of Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu and immediate guarantees for his health. The full text of the letter and a pdf copy are provided below.

7 May 2024 

We, the UNCAC Coalition and the 240 undersigned organizations and individuals from 88 countries across the globe, are deeply concerned about the unjustified arrest and extended imprisonment of Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu in Azerbaijan. Dr. Ibadoghlu is a prominent anti-corruption expert and human rights defender who has been active in the UNCAC Coalition and other civil society networks for many years and served as a Board Member of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). We call for his immediate release as well as the release of other political prisoners in Azerbaijan. 

Dr. Ibadoghlu has exposed corruption in Azerbaijan’s oil and gas sector and advocated for transparency of the country’s public revenues. He also advocated for seizing Azerbaijani oligarchs’ assets that were stolen from the state and stashed offshore through money laundering schemes. In June 2023, Dr. Ibadoghlu established an education foundation in the United Kingdom with the goal of returning the confiscated assets to the people of Azerbaijan through scholarships for students. 

Dr. Ibadoghlu has been imprisoned in Azerbaijan since 23 July 2023, when he was brutally beaten, arrested, and detained by police authorities on unsubstantiated charges of money counterfeiting and connection to terrorism. Despite the lack of evidence, his pre-trial detention has been extended twice, once on 16 November 2023, and most recently on 15 February 2024. After spending 9 months in a prison facility, on 22 April he was placed under house arrest in Baku and is still waiting for a trial. To date, Dr. Ibadoghlu’s contacts with his lawyers and his family have been restricted. His health, already fragile due to diabetes and high blood pressure, has deteriorated significantly in prison because he has been denied proper medical care. He is now at a high risk of having a heart attack and diabetic coma. 

Therefore, the UNCAC Coalition and the undersigned organizations and individuals urgently call for the unconditional and immediate release of Dr. Ibadoghlu and for him to be given access to the medical care he desperately needs. We also urge the authorities of Azerbaijan – which will also host the UN Climate Change Conference in Baku later this year – to respect their international commitments regarding due process in the administration of justice and human rights, consistent with Articles 9 and 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 9.3 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and Article 13 of the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). 

Furthermore, the UNCAC Coalition expresses serious concern for all other human rights defenders, anti-corruption advocates, whistleblowers, journalists and other members of civil society who have been arbitrarily detained or are threatened by government authorities in Azerbaijan and in other countries across the globe. We call upon governments to respect international human rights standards, including the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, in order for civil society to operate without fear of intimidation, harassment, reprisals and persecution. Furthermore, we call upon governments and the international community to step up efforts to protect and defend Dr. Ibadoghlu and all other civil society members in Azerbaijan coming under attack for their anti-corruption work. 

Sincerely,

Non-Governmental Organizations: 

  1. Albanian Center for Economic Research (ACER), Albania 
  2. Action Jeunesse pour le Développement (AJED-Congo), Republic of Congo 
  3. Access Info, Spain 
  4. Africa Centre for Open Governance (AfriCOG), Kenya 
  5. Africa Freedom of Information Centre (AFIC), Uganda 
  6. Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), Nigeria 
  7. African Centre for Media & Information Literacy, Nigeria 
  8. ALTAX, Albania 
  9. Aman Coalition, Palestine 
  10. Amnesty International, United Kingdom 
  11. Anti-Corruption Trust of Southern Africa, Zimbabwe 
  12. ARTICLE 19, United Kingdom 
  13. Asociación civil JAPIQAY, Memoria y Ciudadanía, Peru 
  14. Association Burkinabè pour le Développement des Energies Renouvelables (ABDER-BIO-DEV/ Burkina), Burkina Faso 
  15. Association femme et Action pour le Développement , Guinea 
  16. Association Guinéenne pour la Transparence, Guinea 
  17. AWTAD Anti-corruption Organization, Yemen 
  18. Bahrain Transparency, Bahrain 
  19. Bantay Kita – Publish What You Pay Phils., Philippines 
  20. Cameroon Anti Corruption Youths Movement, Cameroon 
  21. Cameroonian Human Rights League, Cameroon 
  22. Care for the Physically Challenged and Destitute Foundation (CAPCADF), Nigeria 
  23. Center for Civil Liberties, Ukraine 
  24. Center for Peace and Advocacy (CPA), South Sudan 
  25. Centre de Recherche sur l’Anti-Corruption (CERC), Democratic Republic of the Congo 
  26. Centre for Development and Democratization of Institutions, Albania 
  27. Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI), Pakistan 
  28. CiFAR – Civil Forum for Asset Recovery e.V., Germany 
  29. CISE Malawi, Malawi 
  30. Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/ TI-Nigeria, Nigeria 
  31. Club Ohada Thies, Senegal 
  32. Coalition Nationale Publiez Ce Que Vous Payez Guinée, Guinea 
  33. Community Information and Advocacy Initiative, Nigeria 
  34. Community Outreach for Development and Welfare Advocacy (CODWA), Nigeria 
  35. Corner House, United Kingdom 
  36. Crude Accountability, USA 
  37. Crudo Transparente, Colombia 
  38. Derecho Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (DAR), Peru 
  39. Dialogue and Research Institute (DRI), South Sudan 
  40. DiXi Group, Ukraine 
  41. EITI MEXICO, Mexico 
  42. Family Therapy Association of the Gambia, Gambia 
  43. Fundación Jubileo, Bolivia 
  44. Foundation For Environmental Rights, Advocacy & Development (FENRAD NIGERIA) Nigeria 
  45. Freedom Files, Poland 
  46. Freedom for Eurasia, Austria 
  47. Friends of the Earth Australia, Australia 
  48. Fundación Libertad Ciudadana – Transparency International Panama, Panama 
  49. Fundación Multitudes, Chile 
  50. Fundación Nacional para el Desarrollo – TI El Salvador, El Salvador 
  51. Global Actions for Humanity (GOAH), South Sudan 
  52. Global Witness, United Kingdom 
  53. Government Accountability Project, USA 
  54. Grupo de Trabajo contra la Corrupción (GTCC), Peru 
  55. Hawkmoth, The Netherlands 
  56. HEDA Resource Centre, Nigeria 
  57. Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, North Macedonia 
  58. Human Rights Center, Georgia 
  59. Human Rights Center “Viasna”, Belarus 
  60. Human Rights Center of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan 
  61. Human Rights Defence Center Memorial, Russia 
  62. Human Rights Foundation (HRF), USA 
  63. Impunidad Cero, Mexico 
  64. Initiatives for Community Development- Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone 
  65. Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), Georgia 
  66. International Platform against Impunity, Switzerland 
  67. International Society for Peace and Safety, Nigeria 
  68. I-Watch Organization, Tunisia 
  69. Jamaa Resource Initiatives, Kenya 
  70. Jaringan Pemantau Independen Kehutanan (JPIK), Indonesia 
  71. Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Rule of Law, Kazakhstan 
  72. Legal Policy Research Centre, Kazakhstan 
  73. Lumière Synergie pour le Développement , Senegal 
  74. Mexiro A.C, Mexico 
  75. Migrant Workers Association of Lesotho, Lesotho 
  76. Millennium Development Centre Gusau, Nigeria 
  77. Mineral Inheritors Rights Association, India 
  78. Mozambican Association for Active Citizenship – AMOCA, Mozambique 
  79. National Campaign for Sustainable Development Nepal, Nepal 
  80. National Whistleblower Center, USA 
  81. Natural Resource Governance Institute, USA 
  82. Nature Advocacy and Development Initiatives (NADI), Nigeria 
  83. Netherlands Helsinki Committee, The Netherlands 
  84. Niger Delta Study Group on Extractive Sector, Nigeria 
  85. No Business With Genocide, USA 
  86. Norwegian Helsinki Committee (NHC), Norway 
  87. Nouveaux Droits de l’Homme Congo Brazzaville, Republic of Congo 
  88. Nyika Institute, Malawi 
  89. ONG ACOMB, Togo 
  90. ONG WARIS comité des droits humains , Gabon 
  91. Open Contracting Partnership, USA 
  92. Open Data Charter, Argentina 
  93. Organisation Tchadienne Anti-corruption (OTAC), Chad 
  94. Oživení, z.s., Czech Republic 
  95. Participación Ciudadana, Dominican Republic 
  96. Partners Albania for Change and Development, Albania 
  97. Pay No Bribe Animators (PaNBA) Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone 
  98. PCQVP, Mali 
  99. Plateforme de la société civile Démocratie, Paix, Élections et Développement Durable en Guinée (Plateforme DPEG), Guinea 
  100. Policy Alert, Nigeria 
  101. PROETICA, Peru 
  102. Progress Integrated Community Development Organization (PICDO), Ethiopia 
  103. Protection of Rights without Borders NGO, Armenia 
  104. Public Association “Dignity”, Kazakhstan 
  105. Public Association Echo, Kazakhstan 
  106. Public-Private Integrity, Gambia 
  107. Publiez ce que Vous Payez Congo, Congo, Republic 
  108. Publish What You Pay United Kingdom, United Kingdom 
  109. Publish What You Pay United States, USA 
  110. Publish What You Pay Indonesia, Indonesia 
  111. Publish What You Pay Nigeria, Nigeria 
  112. Publish What You Pay International, United Kingdom 
  113. Publish What You Pay Madagascar, Madagascar 
  114. Rencontre pour la Paix et les Droits de l’Homme (RPDH), Congo, Republic 
  115. Repatriation Group International, USA 
  116. Réseau Nigérien Anti-Corruption, Niger 
  117. Romanian Academic Society, Romania 
  118. ROTAB, Niger 
  119. Rural And Urban Aid for Youth Development Initiatives, Nigeria 
  120. Rural Initiative for Change, Nigeria 
  121. Rwenzori Anti Corruption Coalition, Uganda 
  122. Samata, India 
  123. Semillas para la Democracia, Paraguay 
  124. Sensitisation Against Hazard and Crime Initiative, Nigeria 
  125. Society for the Widows and Orphans, Nigeria 
  126. Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Nigeria 
  127. Somali Journalists Syndicate (SJS), Somalia 
  128. Southern Africa Resource Watch – Coalition Against SLAPPs in Africa (CASA), South Africa
  129. Spotlight on Corruption, United Kingdom 
  130. Stakeholders Alliance for Corporate Accountability, Nigeria 
  131. Swedish International Liberal Centre (SILC), Sweden 
  132. Syri i Vizionit, Kosovo 
  133. Terra-1530, Moldova 
  134. The Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, Malta 
  135. The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency Coalition, USA 
  136. The Lebanese Oil and Gas Initiative-LOGI, Lebanon 
  137. Transparencia por Colombia, Colombia 
  138. Transparency and Economic Development Initiative TEDI , Nigeria 
  139. Transparency International, Germany 
  140. Transparency International – Initiative Madagascar, Madagascar 
  141. Transparency International – Macedonia, North Macedonia 
  142. Transparency International Australia, Australia 
  143. Transparency International Bangladesh, Bangladesh 
  144. Transparency International Cambodia, Cambodia 
  145. Transparency International EU, Belgium 
  146. Transparency International France, France 
  147. Transparency International Germany, Germany 
  148. Transparency International Ireland, Ireland 
  149. Transparency International New Zealand, New Zealand 
  150. Transparency International Sierra Leone, Sierra Leone 
  151. Transparency International Taiwan, Taiwan 
  152. Transparency International U.S., USA 
  153. Transparency International Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe 
  154. Transparency Maroc, Morocco 
  155. Turkmenistan Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, Bulgaria 
  156. UK Anti-Corruption Coalition, United Kingdom 
  157. UNCAC Coalition, Austria 
  158. UNISHKA Research, USA 
  159. United Action for Democracy, Nigeria 
  160. Uzbek Forum for Human Rights, Germany 
  161. Veille Citoyenne Togo, Togo 
  162. Whistleblowers of America, USA 
  163. World Dynamics of Young People, Cameroon 
  164. Yemeni Observatory for Human Rights, Yemen

Individuals:

  1. Abdelaziz Nouaydi, Morocco, General Secretary of Transparency Morocco, Lawyer in Rabat Bar 
  2. Alexandra Gillies, USA, Director, Global Anti-Corruption Consortium 
  3. Ali Sadki, Morocco, Project manager at Transparency Maroc 
  4. Andrew Feinstein, United Kingdom, Author 
  5. Angela Asuncion, Philippines, Lead Technical Consultant – Bantay Kita 
  6. Anne-Claire Defossez, USA, Researcher, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton 
  7. Arien Mack, USA, Professor 
  8. Athayde Motta, Brazil, Consultant 
  9. Ba Aliou Coulibaly, Mauritania, President of PWYP Coalition 
  10. Blanche Sonon, Benin, Personne resource 
  11. Carlo Merla, Botswana, Chair of the Board of Publish What You Pay 
  12. Carlos Monge, Peru, PWYP Board Member 
  13. Cde Munyaradzi Bidi, Zimbabwe, Anti-corruption/Human Rights activist 
  14. Cecilia Ogwuche, Nigeria , Human Rights Advocate 
  15. Chantal Cutajar, France, Professor 
  16. Charles Becker, USA, Research Professor of Economics, Duke University 
  17. Charles Scheiner, USA, Transparency Campaigner 
  18. Cornelia Abel, Germany, Senior Program Manager, Transparency International 
  19. Dani Kaufmann, France, Professor 
  20. Demba SEYDI, Senegal, PWYP Senior Regional Coordinator Francophone Africa 
  21. Diarmid O’Sullivan, United Kingdom, Editor, Critical Takes on Corporate Power 
  22. Didier Fassin, France, Professor at the Collège de France 
  23. Dill Koang Ruey Shagh, South Sudan, Executive Director for Global Actions for Humanity (GOAH) 
  24. Eze Alloysius, Nigeria, Director, PLAYYA Nigeria 
  25. Favour Ime, Nigeria, Regional Manager, Africa 
  26. Gabriel Sipos, United Kingdom, Anti-corruption analyst 
  27. Gabriela Flores, Peru, Investigative journalist, Co-founder of Japiqay 
  28. H. Rice, United Kingdom, Independent Researcher 
  29. Irene Tello Arista, Mexico 
  30. Jack A. Blum, Esq., USA, Lawyer 
  31. Jan Kubik, USA, Distinguished Professor and Chair, Rutgers University, Professor Emeritus, UCL (University College London) 
  32. Jana Morgan, USA, Publish What You Pay – Board Member 
  33. Jennifer Hunt, USA, Distinguished Professor of Economics, Rutgers University 
  34. Jeshadul Hoque Tanim, Bangladesh, Whistleblower, Online Digital Marketing Expert 
  35. Jessica Ludwig, USA, Director, Global Policy, George W. Bush Institute 
  36. Jodi Vittori, USA, Professor and anti-corruption expert 
  37. Dr. Juanita Olaya García, Germany, Chair of the UNCAC Coalition Working Group on Victims of Corruption 
  38. Katharina Lang, Germany 
  39. Kevin I.J. Yeh, Taiwan, Vice Chair, Transparency International, Taiwan 
  40. Lisa Hartevelt, The Netherlands, Director of External Relations and Communication at the Wildlife Justice Commission & Chair of the UNCAC Coalition Working Group on Environmental Crime and Corruption 
  41. Marcel Thum, Germany, Professor of Economics, TU Dresden 
  42. María Alejandra Márquez, USA, Founder, Iniciativa Para La Recuperación de Activos Venezolanos (INRAV) 
  43. Matthew Murray, USA, Adjunct Professor, Columbia University 
  44. Mel Flanagan, Australia, Chair PWYP Australia Steering Committee 
  45. Michael Jarvis, USA, Executive Director, Trust, Accountability & Inclusion Collaborative 
  46. Michael Johnston, USA, Charles A. Dana Professor of Political Science Emeritus, Colgate University 
  47. Michael Karanicolas, USA, Executive Director – UCLA Institute for Technology, Law & Policy 
  48. Michael Kwame Boadi, Ghana, Fundraising Manager 
  49. Mohamed SANGARE, Senegal, Regional Advisor 
  50. Mona Lena Krook, USA, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Rutgers University 
  51. Moussa Iboun Conté, Guinea, Vice Président de la coalition nationale “Publiez Ce Que Vous Payez – Guinée” 
  52. Dr. Mustapha Olajiday Thomas, Sierra Leone, Geoscientist/Social Activist 
  53. Prof. Naomi Roht-Arriaza, USA, Professor of Law 
  54. Dr.Noora Hasan, Iraq, MENA Region representative at Global Council 
  55. Obert Chinhamo, Zimbabwe, Director, Anti-Corruption Trust of Southern Africa 
  56. Osman Ahmed, England, Somali Diaspora Anti-corruption Committee founder 
  57. Patrick Conway, USA, Professor Emeritus of Economics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
  58. Rainer Geiger, France, Transparency International 
  59. Robert Pitman, USA, Senior Governance Officer, NRGI 
  60. Saladin Ambar, USA, Rutgers University 
  61. Sarah Backstrand, USA, Fundraising Associate, Natural Resource Governance Institute 
  62. Shaazka Beyerle, USA, Author 
  63. Sihem Bouazza, Tunisia, Radio Director 
  64. Silas Olan’g, Tanzania, Human Rights Activist 
  65. Simon Taylor, Spain, Co-Founder & Board member, Global Witness, and Co-Founder Publish What You Pay 
  66. Soumyabrata Chakraborty, India, Human Trafficking Prevention Practitioner 
  67. Susana Coroado, Belgium, Researcher 
  68. Suzana Frasheri, Albania, Senior Anti-corruption Expert 
  69. Suzanne Hoff, The Netherlands, International Coordinator, La Strada International 
  70. Tamika Halwiindi, Zambia, Programme Coordinator – TI Zambia & CSO Board member (alternate) EITI 
  71. Tara James, USA, Program Coordinator, Rutgers University 
  72. Thomas de Waal, United Kingdom, Writer and scholar 
  73. Thomas Prusa, USA, Professor of Economics 
  74. Tom Devine, USA, Legal director, Government Accountability Project 
  75. William Field, USA, Rutgers University 
  76. Zoé Spriet-Mezoued, United Kingdom, Strategic Communications and Campaigns Manager, Publish What You Pay International 

PDF Open Letter in Support of Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu – 7 May 2024