On December 15 Baku Appeal Court ruled for freedom of Rustam Ismayilbayli, 19-year-old political activist, after he was arrested for protest rally which he didn’t attend.
Ismayilbayli, student at Baku State University, was arrested on December 2 in a local court in Baku for one month on charge of violating epidemiological quarantine regime. A day earlier he was detained by the police in Baku’s central Fountains Square after a protest rally was held in defense of imprisoned oppositionist Saleh Rustamli.
In his detainment video, Ismayilbayli is heard screaming he “was not a participant” in the rally. A day before he wrote a Facebook post saying he was not sure if he would attend the rally because of overload of his university classes. In a piece for Jam News, his father Huseyn Ismayilbayli also argued that his son arrived at the scene hours after the rally was over.
Ismayilbayli’s friends who attended his trial reported that a police officer who testified before the court claimed that Ismayilbayli was the organizer of the rally. In fact, the organizers were political activists Ilkin Rustamzada and Mete Turksoy, who were detained before the rally.
His family argued that if Ismayilbayli served full sentence, he would reach his limit of absence from classes, not be able to graduate and thus be drafted for the army. His friends claimed that Azerbaijani government intended to deprive Ismayilbayli of his right to education and prevent him from pursuing further degrees abroad. Ismayilbayli is known for his political activity, especially in organizing small protests in front of government buildings.
On December 10, Baku Appeal Court held a hearing on request of Ismayilbayli, where it ruled against his demand to be released but reduced his sentence by 50 minutes. After the ruling Ismayilbayli sarcastically thanked the judge for “effort you made”.
On December 15, Appeal Court ruled on another request of Ismayilbayli, this time deciding on his favor and releasing, effective immediately.
After the release, Ismayilbayli took to Twitter and suggested: “They arrested as they wished, and freed as they wished.”