The OSCE plenary meeting in Warsaw again criticized Azerbaijan

  The OSCE plenary meeting last week in the capital of Poland reviewed  and assessed the implementation of commitments of member countries to the organization.

Each day of the meeting was devoted to a single topic and on each issue US representative Michael Kozak made statements, and in  each of which was mentioned Azerbaijan. This is stated in the text of the statement Kozak, common OSCE press service.

So, on freedom of thought, conscience and religion, he noted that non-traditional religious groups that Azerbaijan faced with barriers to legal registration, especially those based outside Baku. Members of such groups are not free to practice their religion without fear of police raids, fines, detention, arrest or prosecution. Many religious adherents imprisoned.

The UN Committee against Torture report on Azerbaijan expressed concern about allegations of torture and mistreatment of prisoners, including the use of torture to coerce confessions From 2010-2015, not a single individual was prosecuted for such abuse, despite the complaints from released political prisoners and their lawyers. For example, detainees Muslim Unity Movement leader Taleh Bagirov, and youth activists Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov, alleged they were tortured by government officials.

Religious groups that Azerbaijan considers non-traditional face obstacles to legal registration especially those outside of Baku.  Members of such groups cannot freely practice their religion without fear of police raids, fines, detention, arrest, or prosecution.  Many religious adherents are incarcerated. 

We welcome the pending Venice Commission’s opinion on Azerbaijan’s constitutional amendments in advance of the September 26 referendum, and urge the government of Azerbaijan to take into account the Opinion before proceeding with the referendum.  We also urge the authorities to foster an environment conducive to open public discussion about the proposed amendments and respect the freedoms of association and expression, and the right to peaceful assembly.

We would like to highlight the importance of ensuring that historically marginalized populations, such as persons with disabilities, are included in elections on an equal basis with others.  When segments of society are excluded from or face significant obstacles to participating in this essential democratic exercise, we fall far short of our OSCE commitment to ensure the equal opportunity of all to participate fully in the life of their society.  In this regard we welcome ODIHR’s ongoing efforts to address voters with disabilities in its elections monitoring.

Finally, the United States reiterates its support for ODIHR and other OSCE institutions supporting democratic reforms including the Representative on Freedom of the Media and the High Commissioner on National Minorities.  We value their independence and their mandates, and commit to continuing our strong support for the OSCE’s election observation missions.

At the session devoted to Media Freedom he said that in Azerbaijan, we remain concerned about the shrinking space for independent media.  Since the arrest of its financial director in August, the independent newspaper Azadliq has been unable to print.  While we welcome the release of Khadija Ismayilova, Parviz Hashimli, Hilal Mammadov, and Rauf Mirkadirov and other imprisoned journalists and activists, we urge the government to remove travel restrictions on Ms. Ismayilova, Meydan TV reporters Natig Javadli and Aytan Farhadova, and others.  We also urge the government to free without restrictions all journalists and others incarcerated for the exercise of freedom of expression.

In Azerbaijan, while the government approved recent rallies against proposed constitutional changes, we are disappointed by reports of harassment and detention of activists and journalists before and after the rallies. We are also concerned that the proposed constitutional changes in Azerbaijan would further constrain Azerbaijanis’ already limited ability to assemble freely and peacefully.  As noted by the Venice Commission, the constitutional reform is being conducted without any parliamentary involvement, and within a tight time frame that does not enable sufficient public debate.  We urge the government to immediately release those detained while exercising or attempting to exercise their fundamental freedom of peaceful assembly, and note with concern the Venice Commission’s finding that the proposals for constitutional change consolidate power in the hands of the president and make the executive even less accountable. 

We still hear this tired accusation from a number of participating States:  When a fellow State, or a human rights defender, or an NGO, or a journalist criticizes the human rights record of a particular country, this does not constitute interference in internal affairs. As we all reaffirmed at Astana, Human Dimension commitments “are matters of direct and legitimate concern to all participating States and do not belong exclusively to the internal affairs of the state concerned.”  No government secure in its democratic legitimacy would be frightened by efforts, whether domestic or international, to expose abuses. The record of my own government has been examined and sometimes criticized here by fellow States and civil society members. This is to be expected. We might not always agree with the criticism, but we take it seriously, and we try to respond in a serious way.

Indeed, my government is among only a handful represented here that has acknowledged domestic shortcomings and discussed how we are working to address them. As is our custom, my delegation will report later today on steps we took to fulfill the promises we made at last year’s HDIM, and are planning to take additional measures between now and the 2017 HDIM.

And my delegation made a special point of reaching out to Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova through the power of technology, since she was prevented from travelling here. These and other personalen counters put a human face on the disturbing trends we see in the region.  -02D-