Hajibeyli called on Turkish authorities not to deport her to Azerbaijan.

Turkish law enforcement agencies have initiated deportation proceedings against Azerbaijani opposition politician Gultekin Hajibeyli to Azerbaijan on suspicion of threatening public safety. She appealed to the ECHR and called on Turkish authorities not to extradite her due to the risk of arrest.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," Gultekin Hajibeyli, a member of the Coordination Center of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF) of Azerbaijan, was detained in Turkey on the night of November 30. On December 3, Azerbaijani lawyer Bahruz Bayramov stated that Hajibeyli has been deprived of contact with her family since her detention. Opposition members linked this detention to the case against the leader of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, Ali Karimli.

On the evening of December 3, a statement posted on Hajibeyli's Facebook account*, which she submitted after her detention, confirmed that she is being held in the Arnavutköy Deportation Center in Istanbul.

Hajibeyli considers her detention unlawful.

"I arrived in Istanbul on September 25 to see my son, who is studying here, and my three-month stay in Turkey has not yet expired. In addition, I have a separate residence permit in Turkey for two years. I would like to especially emphasize that I did not violate any laws during my stay in Turkey," Hajibeyli's statement continues.

She reports that preparations are underway for her deportation to Azerbaijan.

"For the purpose of illegally and unjustifiably deporting me to Azerbaijan, I am being held here under Article G-82 (referring to the code explaining the reasons for deportation from Turkey - note from the "Caucasian Knot") on "creating threats to public security," which is usually used against foreign terrorists, and work is underway to extradite me to Azerbaijan," she states. Hajibeyli.

I call on the Turkish government to refrain from making an illegal decision against me under pressure from the Azerbaijani authorities.

She reports that in connection with her detention, "an appeal has already been made to the European Court of Human Rights."

"At the same time, through my lawyer in Turkey, we will appeal to a Turkish court as soon as possible. From here, I call on the Turkish government to refrain from making an illegal decision against me under pressure from the Azerbaijani authorities. I was an MP for 10 years, representing Azerbaijan in PACE. As one of the leaders of the Azerbaijani opposition, I have always been a supporter of democratic, peaceful, and civilized political struggle. "I have never violated the law in my political activities, and therefore my extradition to Azerbaijan today under Article G-82 as a foreign terrorist is unacceptable," Hajibeyli notes, emphasizing that she has always been a supporter of the development of Azerbaijani-Turkish friendship.

Hajibeyli also points out that her extradition to Baku would mean the Turkish authorities' support for the repression of the Azerbaijani opposition.

She emphasized that if deported to Azerbaijan, she faces arrest on trumped-up charges.

Lawyer Bahruz Bayramov, whom Hajibeyli's relatives asked to represent Hajibeyli in Azerbaijan, suggested that the politician's statement was made public after he spoke with her son on the phone on December 2.

He did not have information on the details of Hajibeyli's case or the nuances of Turkish legislation.

However, according to the lawyer, a person facing deportation or extradition has the right to file an urgent appeal to the ECHR under special Rule 39 of the Rules if extradition would result in unjustified deprivation of liberty.

Another lawyer, who wished to remain anonymous, explained that before the decision The ECHR prohibits extradition.

However, each Council of Europe country implements ECHR decisions in such situations in its own way. For example, the Georgian authorities, albeit with great reluctance, nevertheless complied with the ECHR's order to suspend the extradition of journalist Afgan Sadigov to Azerbaijan until the Strasbourg Court's final ruling.

However, we have precedents when Turkey urgently extradited journalist Rauf Mirkadyrov and former MP Huseyn Abdullayev to Azerbaijan. Incidentally, Mirkadyrov later, after his release from prison, won the case in the ECHR,” the expert said.