USCIRF's Keely Bakken: "Azerbaijani government continues to restrict freedom of religion or belief"

Since 2013, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, a bipartisan U.S. federal government commission that monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad, has categorized Azerbaijan as a Tier 2 country, indicating serious violations of religious freedom by the government. Other countries in this category include Afghanistan, Cuba, Russia, and Turkey.

Back in Baku, authorities dismiss any criticism over religious crackdown, claiming that they are "fighting" against religious influence from "outside actors".

While it is critical that people understand that just because someone is accused of being radical/affiliated with Iran, etc, doesn"t mean they are and regimes like the ones in that part of the world throw the accusation around when it suits them, there are however, increasing concerns over crackdowns (and other forms of persecution) on, for instance, Iranian-backed, or Turkey-supported religious groups in Azerbaijan, and the impact on radicalization and recruitment to extremist / terrorist groups domestically and / or internationally. How should the Azeri government walk between those two lines - a rise of religious influence, and potential extremism?

To answer this and other related questions, TURAN's Washington D.C. correspondent interviewed USCIRF"s Policy Analyst Keely Bakken on the current state of religious freedom in Azerbaijan.

Q. Last month Azerbaijan, like many other Muslim nations around the world, celebrated Eid al-Adha, the festival of the Sacrifice. However, our calendar is getting crowded with the wrong kinds of anniversaries too; those of horrific clashes between the government forces and religious groups/activists. Just recently, for example, Azeris were marking the first anniversary of 2018 Ganja clashes in which the government held "religious radicals" responsible for an assassination attempt on the mayor of a western city of Azerbaijan, and the deaths of two police officers... And then comes the anniversary of Nardaran clashes which took place in November, 2015... Many western observers believe than Azerbaijan is much more religious than it was 25 years ago. So why do you think is religious freedom under attack?

A. The Azerbaijani government continues to restrict freedom of religion or belief through a religion law that extensively regulates and in many ways limits and even criminalizes religious activity in the country. One way in which authorities control religious activity is through mandatory registration requirements. Religious groups are required by law to register with the government in order to organize and operate. Any unregistered religious activity is strictly prohibited, and may result in fines, detainment, or the arrest of violators. However, not all religious groups can meet the law"s arbitrary requirement that each group be composed of at least fifty adult founding members needed to register - which then precludes them from registration and deprives them of the ability to, under this law, "legally" practice their religion. Last year also saw a spate of police raids on unregistered home mosques, churches, and private homes suspected of hosting unauthorized "religious meetings" and gatherings. We"ve been encouraged that this trend appears to be on the decline this year.
Other aspects of the law restrict each registered group"s religious activities to its registered address as well as regulating the production, import, export, and dissemination of religious literature and materials. Just last year, the government banned one theologian"s book on Islam, a decision that Azerbaijan"s Supreme Court recently upheld. Another matter of concern has been the government"s stance on conscientious objection: although the constitution technically allows for this exemption, alternative military service has been denied in practice. Jehovah"s Witnesses have been prosecuted on charges of evading military service for exercising their right to conscientious objection.
Lastly, local NGOs in Azerbaijan maintain lists of political prisoners and claim that as many as 68 individuals are imprisoned in connection with their religious activities or beliefs. These lists include members of the Muslim Unity Movement as well as individuals such as Sardar Babayev, a Shi"a imam who remains imprisoned for illegally performing a religious ceremony after having received his religious education abroad. Widespread and continuing allegations of torture in prisons also remain a serious concern.
Q. Countries like Azerbaijan, according to independent reports, have moved aggressively against members of peaceful political opposition groups and religious communities, often justifying their actions on "dubious counter-terrorism grounds". These actions in turn risk promoting the views of the most radical actors within these communities. How can the West support religious activists/practitioners in dictatorships before they become radicalized? To disavow all "religious prisoners" because they might be radicalized is simply against U.S. values of religious liberty as well as international human rights values, right?
A. USCIRF has noted that protecting religious rights, and human rights more broadly, goes hand-in- hand with countering violent extremism and terrorism. On the other hand, the restriction of religious rights can actually contribute to fomenting the extremism and terrorism those laws intend to combat. USCIRF recently published a legislative factsheet on anti-extremism laws that addresses this question from the standpoint of international human rights standards. To put it simply-and I would direct you to that factsheet (https://www.uscirf.gov/reports-briefs/factsheets/march-2019-legislation-factsheet-anti-extremism-laws) to explore the issue in depth-anti-extremism laws must be narrow in focus, non-discriminatory, and clearly linked to the use or advocacy of violence.

Governments often misuse overly broad anti-extremism laws to restrict a whole host of rights, such as freedom of speech, assembly, or association, or they exploit those laws as a means to target political opponents or dissidents. While Azerbaijan does indeed have legitimate national security concerns, its authorities must ensure that it does not use anti-extremism and counterterrorism measures so broadly as to penalize individuals or communities peacefully practicing their religion.
It is important for the United States and other countries to continue to firmly encourage the Azerbaijani government to fulfill its human rights commitments, including those obligations that guarantee the freedom of religion or belief. USCIRF has long-recommended a "whole-of- government" approach in how the U.S. government should work to protect and promote religious freedom abroad for all-including through all available diplomatic and legal tools, and this approach should be explored in the case of Azerbaijan, as appropriate.
One additional note, regarding your comment on the Tier 2 category: while USCIRF has in the past placed Russia on this secondary list, the decline of religious freedom in that country has prompted us to elevate it to Tier 1, among the world"s worst offenders, since 2017.
Q. In its recommendations for how the U.S. government can safeguard religious freedom in the region, USCIRF recently suggested some steps that could increase awareness and understanding of minority groups, such as stronger relationships between American diplomats and human rights activists, who work on behalf of smaller faith groups. How would you evaluate the state of human rights/religious activism in Azerbaijan?
A The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom focuses on the state of freedom of religion or belief abroad, but as I mentioned earlier, human rights are related and interconnected. Many of the restrictions I described that place limitations explicitly on religious freedom also limit freedom of speech, assembly, and association. So, to the extent that such restrictions exist and allow punishment of the exercise of these rights under the law, it doesn"t bode well for human rights in the country more generally.

While many of the recommendations included in USCIRF"s 2019 Annual Report chapter on Azerbaijan propose actions that would have a direct impact on the state of religious freedom-such as by reforming the law on religious organizations and permitting the registration of all religious communities-others, as you mentioned, recommend that the U.S. government support civil society and independent, Azerbaijani-language media as additional ways to promote religious freedom in the country.
Q. There have been calls on the Trump administration to review U.S. government security-focused policies and assistance to foreign governments with poor religious freedom records, given that they frequently justify their crackdowns on the basis of countering terrorism, which in turn can fuel alienation and violence. Can Azerbaijan be deprived of U.S. assistance amid religious crackdown?

A. The International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) of 1998 prescribes a number of actions the U.S.government can take in response to a country or government that engages in or tolerates particularly severe religious freedom violations, including sanctions or the withdrawal of developmental or security assistance, among others. However, such actions have generally been reserved for those countries that the U.S. State Department has designated a Country of Particular Concern, or CPC.

Nonetheless, the U.S. government continues to engage with the Azerbaijani government on religious freedom concerns through the U.S. Embassy in Baku, and in other forums, such as the Universal Periodic Review Process, which Azerbaijan underwent last year. Among the recommendations that the U.S. submitted at that time was that Azerbaijan "immediately and unconditionally release all individuals in custody for exercising their fundamental freedoms, including the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly, and religion."

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.