Human rights activists call to stop hosting Conference of Parties (COP) annual climate summits in authoritarian countries

Representatives of a group of international non-governmental organizations and Azerbaijani activists active in political emigration have sent an open letter to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), urging not to hold climate summits in authoritarian countries

"We, as a global coalition of non-governmental organizations, protest against granting repressive governments privileges to host United Nations conferences," the petition says. In particular, they point out that after Azerbaijan was granted the privilege to adopt COP29 in November 2024, pressure on civil society increased in the country in order to completely eliminate it.

Earlier, similar repressive measures were carried out on the eve of COP27 in Egypt and COP28 in the UAE.

The COP29 event in Baku has already led to hundreds of arrests of human rights activists and journalists in Azerbaijan. The secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) must ensure that all host parties comply with international human rights law and do not use this forum as a pretext for censorship and suppression of activism and propaganda of civil society.

"For several years, Azerbaijani journalists and civil society organizations have faced serious restrictions, such as strict media registration requirements, a ban on foreign funding, and restrictions on freedom of expression and association.

The tightening of repressive measures combined with physical and economic threats makes it almost impossible for the media and civil society to work independently," the appeal says. As of July 2024, the list of political prisoners in Azerbaijan is at least 306 people, the authors of the petition note.

The recent arrests of former Azerbaijani diplomat Emin Ibragimov and young Talysh ethnographer Igbal Abilov have caused serious international concern about the human rights situation in Azerbaijan before COP29.

"We call on the UNFCCC to make agreements on future COP public and ensure their compliance with international human rights law, including by protecting the rights to freedom of speech and assembly," the petition concludes.

The appeal was signed by: Femena; Persian Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCHR); Human Rights Club (Azerbaijan); Institute for Freedom and Safety of Reporters (Azerbaijan); Human Rights Institute, International Federation for Human Rights; Voice of Migrant Workers; World Organization against Torture (OMCT, within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders).