The country is teetering on the brink of a human rights crisis, with producing new political prisoners on a host of fake charges and creating horrible human rights environment. The vicious crackdown against the media continues since late November: At least 9 journalists that worked for Kanal 13 and Abzas Media, popular independent media outlets known for criticizing the authorities and exposing corruption, have been arrested on politically motivated charges. The journalists face spurious charges of smuggling by an organized group and could be sentenced up to eight years in prison. Dozens of other journalists were called to police investigations while some face travel bans. The signal the government is sending to its critics is clear: They should stop the journalist investigations and hard-hitting exposes or face the consequences.
Norwegian Helsinki Committee (NHC) has long documented how independent and critical media in Azerbaijan are frequently subject to censorship and forcible closure alongside with the systematic harassment, arbitrary punishment and arrest of journalists and social media activists.
The repression on critics continue on the background of the pre-election season as the country will go to snap presidential elections in less than 3 weeks. On December 7, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, had unexpectedly signed a decree calling a snap presidential election for February 7, 2024. Aliyev, 61, has been in power since 2003, and his current, fourth, term was set to expire in early 2025.
The existing human rights situation in Azerbaijan casts a darker cloud over the upcoming elections. Authorities have failed to produce any credible evidence that could support the charges against the detained journalists. Human rights defenders contend that the alleged evidence was forged and that the accusations are politically motivated, designed to quash dissent. Despite the international criticism and condemnation, Azerbaijan’s authorities remain undisturbed. Their official position is that these activists and journalists are in jail for criminal activities. But their claims ring hollow. What many of these “criminals” have in common is a history of being outspoken on the human rights abuses and exposing the corruption.
Days before his arrest, the imprisoned anti-corruption journalist, Hafiz Babali, wrote in his Facebook post: “If I have lived in another country, I would hear thanks at the state level for these investigative articles on corruption. Criminal cases would have been brought against those who got rich illegally. But my fate in Azerbaijan, as you can see, is just the opposite: the government persecutes those who criticize it.”
As the press freedom situation is worsening steadily in Azerbaijan, the country is near the bottom in international rankings on media freedom. Reporters Without Borders ranks Azerbaijan 151 out of 180 countries in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index. By creating a climate of fear and intimidation among the journalists, the government seeks to compel them to engage in self-censorship. The country media law, which took effect in February 2022, was condemned by human rights community aiming to control and stifle the independent media groups and news cites.
NHC urges authorities to end the targeting of what remains of independent voices in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan’s international partners should act decisively to insist on the immediate release of journalists and activists who are now behind bars for trying to exercise their right to free speech.
The list of the journalists who are being detained at Baku’s notorious Kurdekhani remand prison, awaiting trials on bogus charges, including smuggling and other economic crimes:
