On the 11th of August, Aykhan Israfilov, a member of the Confederation of Trade Unions “Table of Workers” and a courier in Wolt Azerbaijan, was detained and remanded into four months of pre-trial detention in a criminal case under Article 234.4.3 (large-scale drug trafficking) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan. He is under prosecution together with his colleague from the trade union, Elvin Mustafayev. If convicted, Israfilov could face between 5 to 12 years in prison.

Aykhan Israfilov denies the accusations against him and feels he is being punished for his activism.

The persecution of activists began after a protest of couriers held on the 1st of August. The protesters expressed dissatisfaction with the seizure of their scooters after innovations in the rules of the road.

Following changes to the law, the police are requiring category A driver’s licenses from couriers under the pretext that moped engines are over 50 cc. This rule came into force on December 16, 2022 due to changes in the law “On Road Traffic”.