Gubad Ibadoghlu

Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu is a prominent Azerbaijani economist based in the UK, where he serves as Senior Visiting Fellow at the London School of Economics. He is currently serving a four-month pre-trial detention sentence for his work as an activist for human rights in Azerbaijan.

On numerous occasions, Dr. Ibadoghlu has been publicly critical of the Azerbaijan authorities regarding various issues including economics, governance, and their human rights record.  He is the Chairman of the Azerbaijan Democracy Prosperity Movement, an organization that he unsuccessfully attempted to register as a political party in 2021.

In 2023, Dr. Ibadoghlu travelled to Azerbaijan to visit his mother. On July 23, he was arrested while driving in Baku after his car was unexpectedly rear-ended by a police vehicle. After being taken into custody, Dr. Ibadoghlu was held incommunicado for several hours. The following day, Dr. Ibadoghlu was charged with the “production, acquisition, or sale of counterfeit money by an organized group”—charges which are widely considered baseless and pretextual.

The government’s charges relate to allegations that they found counterfeit money hidden at a property that Dr. Ibadoghlu had used as an office space for an old NGO, but that he had not used for several years. After the charges were announced, the District Court in Baku ordered that Dr. Ibadoghlu be held in pre-trial detention for four months, which will likely be extended several times. While in detention, Dr. Ibadoghlu has not been provided with proper medical treatment for his numerous ailments, including diabetes. As a result, his health condition has deteriorated.