CoE commissioner urges Azerbaijani government to end crackdown on civil society, journalists

The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatović, has called on the Azerbaijani authorities to end persecution of journalists and members of the civil society. In a statement made on March 25, Mijatović said the increasing repression faced by journalists and civil society members in Azerbaijan raises concerns. The official reminded that at least six journalists, including the founder of Kanal 13 online television channel, Aziz Orujov and its host, Rufat Muradli, the director of Abzas Media, Ulvi Hasanli, and its chief editor Sevinj Vagifgyzy, as well as independent journalist Teymur Karimov were arrested in November 2023 on dubious charges. In addition to that, at the beginning of March 2024, the police raided the offices of the independent online television station Toplum TV and detained its founder, Alasgar Mammadli, and journalist Mushfig Jabbar. Among the detained civil society members are also independent journalist Avaz Zeynalli, prominent civil society activist, Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, Gubad Ibadoghlu, an academic and a prominent civil society figure, who is suffering from several serious health conditions while in detention. “I urge the Azerbaijani government to take decisive steps to ensure full respect of its human rights obligations. This would require the release of all those, including journalists and civil society activists, who were imprisoned for their legitimate work or for expressing dissenting or critical opinions, and creating an enabling environment for the activities of journalists, civil society and human rights defenders, including in relation to their enjoyment of the rights to freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly,” Mijatović said. The official reminded that she made similar calls to the Azerbaijani authorities since 2019 over the deteriorating situation in relation to the enjoyment of freedom of expression and media freedom, as well as a continuing hostile environment for human rights defenders and civil society activists who face various forms of harassment, intimidation and reprisals. She reminded her letter addressed to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry back in July 2023 in which she urged Baku to improve the situation related to freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly and ensuring that human rights defenders, lawyers and civil society activists can carry out their legitimate activities in a safe and enabling environment, without the risk of being subjected to reprisals, harassment and other obstacles. “Unfortunately, the authorities have continued to show a stark disregard for their human rights obligations in these fields, thereby exacerbating the situation within the country,” Mijatović highlighted