Azerbaijani Opposition Leader Ali Karimli Denied Passport for Two Decades, Unable to Attend Warsaw Security Forum

Baku, Azerbaijan – Azerbaijani Popular Front Party (AXCP) chairman, Ali Karimli, has revealed he has been denied a passport and prohibited from leaving the country for nearly 20 years, preventing him from attending the upcoming Warsaw Security Forum. Despite an invitation to the prestigious international event, Karimli plans to appeal to the Prosecutor General's Office once more in an attempt to secure a passport.

Karimli stated that the authorities have consistently refused him a passport and imposed a travel ban for almost two decades. He cited the impact of this long-standing issue on both his party's and his own international relations, despite having exhausted all legal avenues to restore his rights. The reason given for the passport denial dates back to a 1994 criminal case, where law enforcement claimed explosive materials were found on him. Karimli, who was briefly imprisoned then, dismissed the charges as "fabricated". In 2015, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) recognised the ban on the AXCP chairman's departure from the country as a violation.

The Warsaw Security Forum, scheduled for 29-30 September, is an international platform established in 2014 by the Kazimierz Pulaski Foundation in Poland. Held annually in Warsaw, its primary goal is to foster dialogue on security and defence in the European and Transatlantic regions. The forum aims to discuss security challenges faced by Central and Eastern European countries, strengthen cooperation with NATO, and formulate collective strategies against global threats. Each year, the event draws over 2,000 participants, including state officials, diplomats, experts, and representatives from non-governmental organisations, from more than 90 countries. The forum also presents the "Knight of Freedom" award to individuals or organisations contributing to the values of freedom, democracy, and justice, with past recipients including NATO, Olena Zelenska, and Aleksey Navalny.

Karimli is not alone in facing such restrictions. Human rights defender Oqtay Gulaliyev was recently informed that a criminal case against him from 2012 had been closed and there were no obstacles to his travel abroad. However, on 2 November, ASAN xidmət refused to issue him a passport, citing an exit ban. Gulaliyev suspects this move by the authorities, announced just before a meeting of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) on 26 October, was a "trick" to get sanctions against Azerbaijan lifted.

Similarly, Azer Gasimli, a member of the Board of the REAL movement, views his newly imposed exit restrictions as both a punishment and an obstruction of his activities. He believes the government takes such actions due to concerns over the domestic and international activities of certain individuals. Esabeli Mustafayev, head of the "Democracy and Human Rights" Resource Centre, who also faces exit restrictions from both the Ministry of Taxes and the Prosecutor General's Office, attributes this to the government taking "revenge" for him raising the issue of political prisoners and defending human rights in international organisations.

Despite these accounts, Melahat Ibrahimqizi, a member of the Milli Majlis Committee on Legal Policy and State Building, maintains that such situations do not exist in Azerbaijan. According to her, any individual without a criminal case against them is free to travel wherever and whenever they wish.

However, Esabeli Mustafayev, a lawyer specialising in sending complaints to the ECtHR, highlighted significant issues with the implementation of the ECtHR's decisions. While financial compensation was previously paid promptly by the government, this is no longer the case. Mustafayev noted that none of the "general measures" in 76 ECtHR decisions related to his cases have been implemented, and there are now serious problems with the payment of compensation. He stated that compensation for almost all ECtHR decisions this year remains unpaid for 22 of his cases, despite the Presidential Administration repeatedly indicating that the problem would be resolved soon. The ECtHR obliges governments to provide both financial compensation for material and moral damages and to take general measures to eliminate the consequences of human rights violations, which Mustafayev asserts the Azerbaijani government largely fails to do.