As Azerbaijan prepares to host the next UN climate change conference, COP29, a group of Azerbaijani human rights defenders has launched a joint campaign to end repression in Azerbaijan, the "Progress & Change Action Laboratory", a Geneva-based non-profit advisory group, said in a statement.
"By joining forces under the name of Anar Mammadli, the campaign aims to draw attention to political prisoners in Azerbaijan and the atmosphere of constant repression in the country," the campaign said in a press release.
As a reminder, Anar Mammadli is a well—known defender of democracy and human rights, one of the founders of the "Climate Justice Initiative" on the eve of COP29, the campaigners remind. At the same time, Anar Mammadli is not the only political prisoner in Azerbaijan.
According to the group "For the Freedom of Political Prisoners in Azerbaijan", 303 people are currently being arbitrarily detained in the country. The detention of Anar Mammadli is a symbol of the ongoing repression in the run-up to COP29, the "Progress & Change Action Lab" report emphasizes.
The founders of the campaign refer to the arrests of journalists from "Abzas Media", "Toplum TV" and "Kanal 13", activists of non-governmental organizations such as the Institute for Democratic Initiatives and "Meclis info", and political groups such as the "Third Republic Platform".
As the host country of COP29, Azerbaijan is obliged to organize the event in accordance with the basic requirements of the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change), including interaction with national civil society actors.
"We believe that at this stage Azerbaijan does not meet the conditions to facilitate an open dialogue at COP29, to guarantee the full participation of international and national civil society, or to offer a "safe and secure conference venue for all," as the UNFCCC expects.
Recall that the main theme of COP29 is climate assistance, but the host country has blocked development and democracy assistance since September 2023 and sharply limited access to international funding for civil society organizations operating in Azerbaijan since 2013," the message continues. The initiators of the campaign believe that the participants of COP29 will have to eliminate a clear violation of their obligations by the host party of COP29. Anar Mammadli's campaign to end repression in Azerbaijan is a joint project of Azerbaijani human rights defenders and NGOs.
At the same time, the members of the campaign's steering committee wish their names not to be disclosed. It is also explained that the campaign on behalf of Azerbaijani human rights defenders is managed by the "Progress & Change Action Laboratory". The PCAL is a non-profit advisory group chaired by Florian Irminger and headquartered in Geneva. Given this, Florian Irminger has been working on human rights in Azerbaijan for nearly two decades.
