Human rights groups urge Azerbaijan to free wrongfully imprisoned government critics News
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Human rights groups urge Azerbaijan to free wrongfully imprisoned government critics

Human Rights Watch (HRW), Amnesty International and other NGOs signed a joint statement Tuesday urging Azerbaijan to free wrongfully arrested academic Dr. Gubad Ibadoghlu and release unjustly imprisoned government critics.

Signatories to the statement have followed the case since Ibadoghlu’s arrest on July 23, 2023, and have released several statements advocating for his “immediate and unconditional release.” The statement released on Tuesday condemns the “ongoing crackdown against civil society in Azerbaijan.” It expresses concern for the “estimated hundreds” of individuals targeted on politically motivated charges, including human rights activists, journalists, political opposition members, and NGO leaders.

The statement appeals explicitly to the government of Azerbaijan to uphold its commitments as a member of several multilateral organizations and its obligations under international human rights treaties. The NGOs call for “all charges against Ibadoghlu and against other human rights defenders, journalists and civil society activists which have no credible foundation and were brought as retaliation for their legitimate work” to be dropped. Additionally, the statement advocates for the release of “all individuals wrongfully held on spurious grounds,” and admonishes the government’s use of “criminal prosecution as a tool” to repress government critics and members of civil society. It petitions the government to align with international civil society standards by amending laws regulating NGOs and media.

Ibadoghlu, an academic, anti-corruption expert and chairman of the Azerbaijan Democracy and Prosperity Movement—an organization that has repeatedly been denied registration as a political party—was violently arrested a year prior alongside his wife, Irada Bayramova. Approximately 20 Azerbaijani police in civilian clothes arrested the couple following an incident where “cars without official markings rammed their vehicle, manufacturing a traffic accident.” The statement asserts Ibadoghlu was charged with “blatantly fabricated offences related to counterfeit currency and to extremist religious materials.” Bayramova was eventually released, but Ibadoghlu was placed in a pretrial detention facility, where  he spent nine months before being transferred to house arrest. During his detention, the authorities denied him medical treatment, which exacerbated his chronic health conditions. He is currently facing up to 17 years in prison.

The Economic Research Centre, an Azerbaijani NGO Ibadoghlu led, worked on public finance management, anti-corruption and budget transparency for years before his arrest. The authorities froze the organization’s bank accounts in 2014, forcibly closing it and eventually sending Ibadoghlu into political exile. Giorgi Gogia, associate Europe and Central Asia director at HRW criticized the arrest and detention in 2023 as a “longstanding pattern of pursuing dubious charges against government critics in Azerbaijan.” The European Parliament called for Azerbaijan to release all political prisoners earlier this year, warning that failure to oblige could result in the imposition of targeted measures and sanctions.

Azerbaijan has faced criticism for blocking news websites, arresting journalists who exposed government corruption and persecuting human rights activists. As Azerbaijan is hosting the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) this year, the statement encourages other member states to pressure Azerbaijan to uphold its human rights obligations.

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