Azerbaijan: Crackdown on Independent Media Intensifies - 6 Abzas Media Journalists Behind Bars
Journalists Sevinj Vagifgizi, Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova detained
Location: Azerbaijan, Baku
Date: November 30, 2023Update: June 12, 2024
Azerbaijan courts have extended the pre-trial detention of six journalists, including Sevinj Vagifgizi, Nargiz Absalamova, and Elnara Gasimova, from the anti-corruption investigative news outlet Abzas Media. The journalists face charges of conspiracy to smuggle currency. The crackdown on Abzas Media began with a raid in November 2023, allegedly due to its investigations into corruption among senior state officials. The detained journalists are among 10 from independent media outlets currently jailed in Azerbaijan. The charges against the journalists appear to be direct retaliation for their reporting for Abzas Media, which has been a critical voice in investigating and revealing the wealth of government officials and the family of President Ilham Aliyev. Detaining journalists for exposing corruption is an affront to the right to free speech and the public’s right to know. Women Press Freedom demands their immediate release and unconditional acquittal.
In late 2023, Azerbaijani authorities arrested and detained six journalists from independent media outlet Abzas Media. The journalists, Ulvi Hasanli (director), Sevinj Vagifgizi (chief editor), Mahammad Kekalov, Hafiz Babali, Elnara Gasimova and Nargiz Absalamova, are being held on dubious charges relating to money transfers and face a possible eight years behind bars if convicted.
Abzas Media’s Editor-in-Chief Sevinj Vagifgizi Detained
On November 20, 2023, Khatai District Court in Baku issued an order for Abzas Media editor-in-chief Sevinj Vagifgizi to be held in custody for a period of four months. Vagifgizi is facing charges of conspiring to bring money into the country unlawfully. The reporter was detained upon her arrival at Baku airport in Azerbaijan, and subsequent to her detention, the police conducted searches at her apartment and office. After almost 8 months in custody, Vagifgizi’s pre-trial detention was extended for 3 months on June 12, 2024.
During the court hearing, Vagifqizi said she was banned from talking to her family on the phone because she exposed the abuse and violence against other women in the detention center. Her lawyer has demanded the ombudsman visit the jail to investigate the complaints. Vagifqizi plans to appeal the extension of her detention.
Ulvi Hasanli, Abzas Media's director, was detained on the same day as Vagifgizi. A police raid on his apartment and office allegedly uncovered €40,000 in cash. Electronic and storage devices were confiscated from both locations. He remains in custody.
In 2021, both Vagifgizi and Hasanli were targeted with Pegasus, a spyware developed by the Israeli company NSO Group. Their names were found on a leaked list of individuals who were subjected to surveillance, as reported by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). Vagifgizi was sued for her reporting in 2019, mere weeks after a travel ban imposed on her in 2015 was lifted.
According to their lawyers, the journalists are being prosecuted for their investigations into the wealth of government officials and President Ilham Aliyev's family. If found guilty, the journalists could potentially be sentenced to a maximum of eight years in prison under Article 206.3.2 of Azerbaijan's criminal code.
Arrest of Abzas Media’s Nargiz Absalamova
On November 30, 2023, journalist Nargiz Absalamova from Abzas Media was arrested by the police on charges of smuggling foreign currency. Absalamova was taken into custody after voluntarily reporting to the police for questioning.
This marks the second time Absalamova has been summoned to the police station. Previously, she, along with other Abzas Media reporters, were called in as witnesses to provide information about the outlet's financial sources, as well as its administrative and editorial leadership.
On June 11, 2024 the Khatai District Court in Baku extended the pretrial detention of Absalamova for an additional three months. The prosecution claimed they needed more time and argued that if Absalamova were released, she might communicate with others and interfere with the investigation. Absalamova’s lawyer says these claims are unfounded and plans to appeal.
Absalamova has previously complained about her poor detention conditions in the courthouse, which include being held in a small, dark, cigarette-smoke-filled room, causing her significant anxiety.
Journalist Elnara Gasimova Detained
Abzas Media journalist Elnara Gasimova appeared in court on January 15, 2024, at the Khatai District Court in Baku, where she was remanded in custody for a period of two months and 17 days. Her arrest came after being summoned as a witness in the ongoing AbzasMedia court case two days earlier.
Upon her arrival at court, Gasimova was handcuffed and accompanied by her lawyer, Bahruz Bayramov. Bayramov vehemently denied the charges of smuggling, calling them "baseless and absurd." Gasimova herself believes that her arrest is directly related to her journalistic activities.
On March June 10, 2024, Gasimova’s pre-trial detention period was extended a further two months until August 13, 2024.
Escalating Crackdown on Independent Media in Azerbaijan
Abzas Media stands out as one of the few remaining media organizations in Azerbaijan that continue to operate despite the challenging environment. Many independent news outlets have been forced into exile. The allegations against Abzas Media and its journalists appear to be similar to the spurious accusations made against investigative journalist Afgan Mukhtarli after his abduction from Tbilisi in 2017.
The government's targeting of Abzas Media is not surprising, considering their investigative work, which has exposed various forms of illegality within the government. A decade ago, Aliyev took similar actions to suppress journalists who exposed his and his family's illicit activities, branding them as "foreign-funded" and attempting to shut them down.
Despite President Ilham Aliyev's ongoing efforts to suppress the free press in Azerbaijan, media organizations like Abzas Media, which the government is currently targeting, demonstrate that his attempts to eradicate independent journalism will ultimately fail.
On November 28, Azerbaijan called in ambassadors from the United States, France, and Germany to express its objections regarding what it described as "illegal financial transactions" aimed at backing the investigative journalism organization. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry stated that it had informed the diplomats that their respective embassies and "organizations registered in these countries" were involved in unlawful activities by providing financial support to Abzas Media.
The detention of these journalists is indicative of a broader pattern of suppressing independent media in Azerbaijan. In March 2024, Azerbaijani authorities escalated its attack against the press by raiding the offices of independent outlet Toplum TV and detaining its journalists. Over the years, multiple raids, arrests, and criminal investigations have targeted independent media outlets and organizations advocating for press freedom, as documented by Women Press Freedom.
Women Press Freedom stands firmly in solidarity with Nargiz Absalamova, Sevinj Vagifgizi, Elnara Gasimova, and the other detainees. We strongly condemn their detentions, which underscore the worsening state of press freedom in Azerbaijan. It is crucial for the international community to closely monitor these developments and exert pressure on Azerbaijani authorities to uphold the rights of journalists and ensure the free dissemination of information. We demand their immediate acquittal.
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