Dunja Mijatovic: Hopes that something will change in Azerbaijan are not justified

Baku/16.05.23/Turan: Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic expressed concern about the human rights situation in Azerbaijan in an interview with "Voice of America." She called unacceptable the ongoing pressure and harassment of journalists, human rights defenders and representatives of civil society.

Dunja Mijatovic, who previously held the post of OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, has repeatedly visited Azerbaijan. Mijatovic noted that since then there have been no positive changes in the state of freedom of speech and the media in the country, a restrictive environment remains, and the new law "On the Media" introduces more censorship and restrictions.

"I am currently monitoring several issues related to human rights, freedom of speech and assembly in Azerbaijan. In 2019, the authorities allowed me to visit colonies No. 17 and 16 and see Seymour Khazi and Afghan Mukhtarli, who were in custody at that time. At that time there was a certain cooperation. I had a lot of discussions and shared my recommendations with the Minister of Justice, the Presidential Administration, and the Interior Ministry.

I continue to monitor the human rights situation in Azerbaijan and raise issues related to problems, mainly with the detention of human rights defenders and journalists. Currently, I am closely following the case of Bakhtiyar Hajiyev. His hunger strike and deteriorating health cause concern. I found out that his arrest was recently extended for another two months, and I can't understand why. There is no excuse to cause him such suffering. At the same time, I raised the issue of Elchin Sadygov and Avaz Zeynalli. But not only the people I have listed, many people are being targeted because of their work or because of their different views on certain issues," the Commissioner said.

"This is unacceptable and not the first such case. I have expressed my concerns very openly to the Azerbaijani government many times, hoping that there will be some solutions. Unfortunately, this did not happen."

"Another issue that I am closely following is the trilateral declaration signed in 2020. At that time, I immediately contacted Baku and Yerevan to help with human rights issues.

Since then I have been working hard to visit Karabakh. I offered to draw the attention of the Azerbaijani authorities and even go together. I know that this is a very sensitive issue from a political point of view, I recognize the sovereignty of Azerbaijan, I have always said this. Despite this, my trip has not been successful yet," she said.

Asked about the state of media freedom, Mijatovic replied that in her previous work as an OSCE representative on media freedom. The safety of journalists in Azerbaijan is of serious concern. The situation with media freedom is extremely alarming. The current legislation has an even more negative impact on freedom of speech in general, introducing more censorship and restrictions. The countries that are members of the Council of Europe should not behave like this in the 21st century.

"I don't see any real political will on the part of the government to improve the situation with media freedom in the country. It is impossible to talk about freedom of the media in Azerbaijan without touching on the issue of freedom of assembly. When people take to the streets to raise their voice on any issue, including women's rights or domestic violence, it creates problems and attracts the attention of the world's media," the Commissioner said.

"I know that the Azerbaijani government cares very much about its image. But if you put people in jail for expressing their opinions, it only worsens the image. If the Government wants to be part of the international community, it must value democracy, human rights and the rule of law. This is what I expect from Azerbaijan," concluded Dunja Mijatovic. -0-