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A former Azerbaijani parliamentarian was arrested and charged with extortion this week because he has been speaking out about recent environmental protests against a planned disposal site for chemical waste, he and his lawyer said.
Nazim Baydamirli, who represented the Gadabay district in Azerbaijan's west, was detained Tuesday and placed on four months of pre-trial detention. He called the accusations of extortion fraudulent. Instead, he told the court that his imprisonment was related to his support of protests against the planned chemical waste reservoir in the Soyudlu village of the Gadabay district.
"He said in court that the charge had nothing to do with the reasons behind his arrest. Baydamirli brought to the court's attention that the reason for his arrest was related to his activities," lawyer Agil Lajic told VOA.
The country's Ministry of Internal Affairs contends that Baydamirli has been brought under investigation because of an unrelated complaint.
"A citizen came to the police and said that Nazim Baydamirli demanded $29,000 [50,000 manats] from him, saying that he had inappropriate photos of him. Although he gave Baydamirli $5,800 (10,000 manats) on June 14 of this year, Baydamirli continued blackmailing the complainant and his family, threatening to spread the images, because he failed to pay the remaining amount," the Press Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs alleged.
A number of activists and political figures have called Baydamirli's arrest a political order and have called for his release.
"Nazim Baydamirli's arrest on an obviously false and absurd charge is a violation of rights and justice. By sending a well-known social and political figure to prison on a long term for such an absurd charge, the authorities tell the society that 'we are trampling on law and justice,'" Ali Karimli, chairman of the Azerbaijan People's Front Party (APFP), wrote in a Facebook post. "Freedom to Nazim Baydamirli!"
Standoff over gold mine waste
Residents of the Soyudlu village protested on June 20 against the proposed construction of another artificial lake to hold chemical waste from a nearby gold mine. The mine's existing waste reservoir is nearly full, and protesters say it has been leaking into a nearby lake, causing health problems.
In response, police were deployed to the area. There was a confrontation between police and the protesters, with police using tear gas against the villagers, including elderly female protesters. At least 10 people were reported injured, including six journalists.
According to Samad Rahimli, a member of the "Soyudlu" working group, 11 village residents were arrested in connection with the protests. He said eight of them have been placed in administrative detention for violating rules of assembly, while three others are facing drug-related charges.
Access to the village has since been restricted. A local resident told VOA that law enforcement has set up checkpoints and will let in only villagers.
The resident, speaking on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity around the standoff, told VOA that since the protest, government officials have often come to the village to speak with residents about the situation.
"We are waiting for the results from the monitoring commission. But the work around the cyanide lake has resumed. Nothing has changed," the resident said.
In an interview with VOA before his arrest, Baydamirli said the village residents' complaints have been ignored by the authorities for years, leading them to stage protests. He suggested the authorities' response has worsened the situation.
"Blockade of the village and taking so-called 'measures' to prevent the information from spreading led to more people becoming aware of these events. Similarly, these behaviors angered the population, angered residents, and users on social networks also reacted to it," he said.
Azerbaijan's Prime Minister Ali Asadov established a commission on June 21 to monitor and assess the reservoir's situation in the village, but results have not yet been announced.
VOA's Nigar Mubariz and Parvana Bayramova contributed to this report.