Wave of arrests in Azerbaijan ahead of the climate summit in November There are reports of torture in the prisons Editor in exile asks the Norwegian media and politicians to focus on the human rights violations when they attend COP29 Since it became known that Azerbaijan will host the UN climate summit, Amnesty has, several media and human rights organizations reported on an escalation of arrests in the country, and people are forced into exile. In the past year, the authorities have “cleaned up” many critical, local voices in the country, according to the human rights organisations. In less than a year, six of Leyla Mustafayeva’s employees in the media agency Abzas Media have been imprisoned. – I am very worried about their safety, because it is not a prison like in Europe. There is no guarantee that they will get out safely. It is a price they pay for their journalism right now, says editor Leyla Mustafayeva to news. The journalists are charged with currency smuggling and a number of other things and risk 12 years behind bars. They deny the charges, and link the case to the investigative journalism they have done on corruption in the country. ENTIRE EDITORIAL IN PRISON: The six employees in this photo montage are in prison in Azerbaijan. Abzas Media is known for reporting on government corruption. Graphic: Abzas Media 20 journalists and over 250 activists and political opinion leaders have been imprisoned in the past year, according to human rights groups. Today there is only one month until the climate summit starts. – They will appear as a good country And heads of state, journalists and climate campaigners from all over the world will basically participate as usual during the annual climate conference. With the eyes of the whole world on them, there is a great opportunity to whitewash their reputation, says Leyla. – For us, there is only one word that can describe what the government wants by organizing the climate summit: Greenwashing. Journalists are the authorities’ biggest fear right now, because they can destroy the image they want to create. PRISON: Here, director Ulvi Hasanli of Abzas Media is brought into court. Photo: Fargana Novruzova Climate crisis meets human rights crisis That Azerbaijani leaders should be leading negotiators at the climate conference is ironic and wrong, the editor believes. – They must sit at the same table as other European leaders to discuss climate. When a government does not care about the fundamental rights of its citizens, it will never guarantee climate justice. According to the editor, the authorities will do what is necessary to avoid the human rights situation in Azerbaijan being investigated. This week, Human Rights Watch presented a comprehensive report on the human rights situation in the country. Several international actors are denied entry into the country. So far, 76 European parliamentarians, including three Norwegian parliamentarians, have been banned from entering. Azerbaijani authorities have imprisoned hundreds of people on politically motivated charges. The list includes journalists, activists and human rights defenders who are critical of the government. – Imprisons, threatens and chases critical voices Ahead of the climate summit, Leyla has received the Fritt Ord prize Free Media Awards in Oslo for her work in Abzas Media in uncovering corruption and shedding light on the human rights situation in her home country. She says that Azerbaijan has control over the remaining journalists in the country. – Most of the journalists who are still in the country, and who are not in prison, have been bought and paid. They have become propaganda machines for the authorities, she claims. – Hundreds of journalists have received apartments as gifts from the president, which calls into question their credibility, she continues. IN OSLO: news meets Leyla Mustafayeva at Marienlyst in Oslo after she received the Fritt Ord prize. Photo: Milana Knezevic / news – Some editors have received medals from the president, and in this way got them to write positive articles. The authorities have also engaged in blackmail, threatening journalists with leaking pictures from their private lives, from the bedroom for example. Many have left the country, says Mustafayeva. Relatives of dissidents are also subjected to reprisals, and repressive laws have been passed to hamper the work of voluntary organizations and the media, according to Amnesty International. – Critical and independent voices have either fled the country, are in prison, or dare not say anything because they are afraid of being punished, says Ane Tusvik Bonde, senior adviser at Amnesty to news. Amnesty has also previously documented similar actions by the authorities in connection with other major international events in Azerbaijan, such as Eurovision in 2012 and the European Games in 2015. Does not allow demonstrations – Azerbaijan hosts an international conference on climate justice, while actively undermining its main pillars in climate activism, suppresses all forms of critical expression and protest, and dismantles local civil society, writes Amnesty International in a statement this week. SERIOUS SITUATION: The situation is very serious, now just before the COP29 climate summit, says Ane Tusvik Bonde, senior adviser at Amnesty. Photo: Milana Knezevic / news Amnesty calls it “escalating repression” in the country. In a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amnesty makes several demands. – For the COP to function, it is dependent on representatives from civil society being able to participate. It is not possible to do this freely in Azerbaijan. It is absolutely necessary that countries like Norway use this opportunity to speak to the Azerbaijani authorities, says Tusvik Bonde. IN BAKU SEVERAL TIMES: Climate and Environment Minister Tore O. Sandvik in Baku, Azerbaijan on 10 October. He will also return during the climate summit. Photo: Kristoffer Hansen / Ministry of Climate and Environment Climate and Environment Minister Tore O. Sandvik is traveling to participate in the climate conference in November. He is in Baku now, ahead of the summit. – Is the human rights situation something you will address there? – We have no natural arena to raise this question when we are there now. But this is something that Norway has been driving forward through various forums in the COP and through other forums. We want to meet Azerbaijan and express what we think about it, replies Sandvik. The Norwegian Helsinki Committee also says that Azerbaijan’s government has a long-standing and well-documented pattern of suppressing independent civil society and silencing critical voices. “By the time Azerbaijan organizes COP29, there may no longer be any independent, impartial civil society left in the country,” writes the Norwegian Helsinki Committee in a statement in September. IN JAIL: Since November, six Abzas Media journalists have been arrested on charges of “currency smuggling”. They have denied the accusations, and link the case to the investigation they have carried out into corruption. Here is one of the journalists who is now in prison, Sevinj Vagifizi. Photo: Fargana Novruzova Torture in prisons – How are your employees in prison now? – Terrible, if I have to describe it in one word. We continue to receive information about torture in prisons. When our editor was imprisoned, he had documented the torture cases and made them public. After he made it known, he has received death threats in prison. It means that his life is in danger, says Leyla. – What is it like to live under this constant pressure? – It’s not something I wish on anyone. We were born in this country, and as citizens we also have a responsibility to take it back. We stand by journalistic principles that are about getting the authorities to be transparent. They have taken a lot from our lives. And we have to answer them, says Leyla. WORKING FROM GERMANY: Leyla Mustafayeva had to leave Azerbaijan to avoid being arrested. She runs Abzas Media from Germany. Photo: Milana Knezevic / news – Do you have a message for international journalists? – Focus on stories about violations of human rights in the country as well, and direct the spotlight on colleagues who have been imprisoned on the basis of false accusations, she urges. news has not succeeded in getting a comment from the Azerbaijani embassy. Published 11.10.2024, at 06.12
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Her entire editorial staff imprisoned before the climate summit – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
