Investigation
In the jails of Azerbaijan: torture continues, as does European cooperation
Since last November, six members of the Abzas investigative site have been thrown in prison by the Azerbaijani authorities. RFI and France 24 have joined forces with the Forbidden Stories consortium to continue their investigative work. Among these investigations, the practice of torture in Azerbaijani detention centers, a practice which is far from having declined despite the cooperation between Azerbaijan and European institutions.
A Forbidden Stories investigation with RFI and France 24. © Forbidden Stories
By: Daniel Vallot Follow
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The investigative site Abzas, one of the few independent media in Azerbaijan, is recognized for its investigative work, particularly on corruption cases. In the run-up to the presidential election on February 7, six of its members, including its director Ulvi Hasanli, were arrested on charges described as "false" by several NGOs including Amnesty International and Reporters Without Borders.
The series “The Baku Connection” can also be discovered on the website of France 24 and Forbidden Stories, a consortium whose objective is to continue the work of journalists reduced to silence.
“
They transported me like I was a wild animal. They tied my hands, they locked me in the basement and, every day, it was the same tortures and the same insults... The worst imaginable.
» Mahammad Mirzali's gaze clouds over for a moment, then the 29-year-old stands up in his chair and resumes the thread of his story. As a security measure, we meet him on the second level of an underground car park, somewhere in France: since 2018, the Azerbaijani opponent has been the subject of three assassination attempts on the territory, three attempts which he blames to the Azerbaijani regime and which earned him close protection from the French government*. “
I started criticizing the regime when I was a student
,” recalls Mahammad.
We organized demonstrations, we created events on Facebook. Little by little, I began to fight against the government and denounce corruption.
»
In the fall of 2014, the opponent was arrested by the police and subjected to acts of torture and intimidation for twenty days.
Kept in solitary confinement in a small dark cell in the basement of the Goychay police station, Mahammad is returned every evening to the second floor of the building, and beaten by police officers who ask him for a declaration of “repentance”. To put an end to torture, the opponent is supposed to regret his criticism of the regime and promise, on video, not to do so again. “
They laid me on the ground and beat my feet and stomach. But I refused to give in. And then one evening, they put a bottle on the table, they said: "We're going to shove it up your ass and we're going to see if, after that, you will still say bad things about our president." They were rushing towards me to take off my pants. There, I broke down and said everything they wanted.
» Several years have passed since these torture sessions, but Mahammad Mirzali still bears the physical aftereffects. “
I had a bruise on my stomach and some of my internal organs were torn. Even today, I have trouble running and when I walk too long, it hurts. The doctor I consulted here in France told me that if he operated on me, I risked not having any more children
.”
“They laid me down on the ground and beat my feet and stomach,” says Azerbaijani opposition figure Mahammad Mirzali, 29 years old. © Romeo Langlois / France 24
The young opponent insists on this point: his case and the treatment he suffered are, in Azerbaijan, nothing exceptional. After he fled in 2015, his family was threatened, his father was beaten and several of his opposition friends were subjected to even more severe torture, including electroshock treatment. Torture used as a means of pressure to intimidate opponents of the regime: the same process was reported to us by Nigar Hazy, the daughter of Tofig Yagublu, a figure of opposition to the Azerbaijani regime imprisoned last December on “
phony
” charges.
, according to the NGO
Human Rights Watch
. “
The investigators accuse my father of migrant smuggling, but everything is false
,” explains his daughter, whom we reached by telephone in Baku.
They put him in prison, because he criticizes Ilham Aliyev and because the presidential election is coming!
»
Now aged 62, member of the National Council of Democratic Forces (opposition), the former journalist is not his first stay in prison, very far from it. And he too was a victim of torture. “
It happened on December 1, 2021, after a demonstration
,” his daughter Nigar tells us
. They arrested him and took him outside the city. They
tied his hands and put a plastic bag over his head. As they beat him, the police asked him not to criticize Aliyev again. But my father refused and they hit him in the stomach, and especially in the head so that everyone would know what had happened to him. President Aliyev's goal was to send a message that he could get away with anything, that no one was safe, not even a well-known politician.
Afterward, when he filed a complaint, they said he had hit himself during the interrogation.
» Today, Nigar Hazy fears the worst for her father: “
They are capable of anything
,” she confides to us in one breath, “
even killing him
”.
Opponent Tofig Yagublu after his arrest, December 1, 2021. © Personal archives
The opposition and human rights NGOs have continued to repeat it in recent years: far from official denials, the practice of torture in Azerbaijan has not regressed – nor have arbitrary arrests. opponents and journalists. “
Torture and ill-treatment remain a common practice, and there is almost total impunity for the perpetrators of these acts
,” underlines Giorgi Gogia, responsible for the Caucasus at the NGO Human Rights Watch. Condemned on several occasions by the European Court of Human Rights, the former Soviet Republic has never been sanctioned for these human rights violations.
As for its commercial relations with the European Union, they have never been so fruitful, because Azerbaijan's gas is all the more coveted today as the EU can no longer buy that of Russia since 2022 and the Russian offensive in Ukraine. But, to improve its international image, and to avoid offending its partners too much, Baku has managed for years to remain silent about its disastrous record in terms of respect for human rights. And it is within the Council of Europe, a venerable institution that has guarded human rights since its creation in 1947, that much of this lobbying took place.
Azerbaijan joined the institution in 2001, which gives it access to European elected officials, and cheap respectability on the international scene. The Council of Europe, which should not be confused with the European Council (meeting of leaders of the European Union), brings together 46 states and aims to defend human rights. A diplomatic scene little known in many countries, but essential for countries which do not belong to the European Union and which wish to increase their prestige internationally. “
Azerbaijani leaders need to cooperate with European institutions to pass themselves off as good guys
,” says Arif Mammadov, former Azerbaijani ambassador to the Council of Europe, who moved to the opposition and is still alive today. in exile in Brussels.
The blocked reports of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture
But to do this, we will first have to avoid a first pitfall: the reports of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) – whose delegates can request access to all places of detention in member countries. In 2017, the CPT released a report denouncing the use of torture in
Azerbaijani places of detention
. The report lists the practices of ill-treatment and torture reported to it. Among the "most widespread" methods, that of the "turbine", according to the term used by several of the victims interviewed: the practice consists of "
tying together the hands and legs of a detained person (generally with adhesive tape, but sometimes with a rope, leather belts or handcuffs), forcing the person to bend over, passing a metal pipe or a wooden stick between the elbows and knees of the person so as to immobilize them in a flexion position, suspending her using the pipe or stick, then administering blows to her entire body, including the soles of the feet, during the suspension.
» The report is damning and presents a disastrous situation for a member country of the Council of Europe.
But, since the publication of this report, there has been radio silence and for good reason: Baku has systematically blocked the publication of the following reports, despite consecutive visits by CPT delegations. “
The authorities do not like the content of our reports, they do not want these facts to be disclosed to the public
,” recognizes Djordje Alempijevic, who has carried out several monitoring visits to Azerbaijan for the CPT. For Constantinos Efstathiou, Cypriot MP and member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Azerbaijan's blocking of the CPT's reports is unacceptable. “
The recommendations of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture are there and no one is paying attention to them
,” rages the MP, author of
a report on torture in Europe
. “
Life continues as if nothing had happened and this will remain an internal matter for Azerbaijan! People died, people were tortured and this country is a member of our institution, which is based on respect for human rights. This is a failure of the Council of Europe!
»
Coaching workshops and virtual meetings
To this opacity regarding the work of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture is added a more unexpected aspect: the very extensive cooperation between the Council of Europe and Azerbaijan, and in particular with the country's judicial and penitentiary system. According to documents published on the Council of Europe website, since 2014, nearly 24 million euros, 60% financed by the European Union, have been allocated as part of this cooperation. The “
Action Plan for Azerbaijan
” notably sets out as ambitions “
strengthening the capacities of the judicial system
” or even the fight “
against corruption and cybercrime
” in the country. An additional component, supplemented with more than 1.3 million euros, targets the prison system. On the program: reintegration of prisoners, virtual meetings devoted to “security dynamics”, “coaching” workshops for prison directors, or even a visit to a “model prison” in Spain.
Questioned by our colleagues from France 24 and Forbidden Stories, Arif and Leyla Yunus do not hide their amazement at the sight of a screenshot of one of the virtual meetings organized as part of this cooperation between the European institutions and the prison and judicial authorities in the country. This couple of human rights activists, imprisoned and tortured before heading into exile, have for years documented the regime's abuses and violations of freedoms in Azerbaijan. In the screenshot, alongside representatives of the European Union and the Council of Europe, they recognize the head of an NGO close to the regime, the director of a prison where cases of torture have been reported , or even a prison doctor whom they accuse of intimidation during their own detention. A mix of genres that leaves them speechless. “
The Europeans are giving money for reforms to the judicial and penitentiary systems of Azerbaijan, but in reality nothing changes
:
every day we receive new testimonies of torture
,” Arif Yunus is indignant in front of the image
.
Europe is a symbol for us, a symbol of democracy and the rule of law. But why, if it defends the values of democracy, does it support dictators?
»
Created in 1947, the Council of Europe, whose headquarters is in Strasbourg, aims to be the guardian of human rights. © Council of Europe
According to the Council of Europe, Azerbaijan has carried out reforms well. “
A number of offenses have been decriminalized, alternative penalties have been introduced, as well as non-custodial restraint measures
,” we can read in documents consulted by Forbidden Stories. Other progress, still according to the Council of Europe, “
the
reduction in the number and duration of pre-trial detentions
”, as well as the “presidential decree” of April 2019, which would have made it possible to reform the judicial and legal system. “
The type of regulation adopted does not matter, especially when it comes to political prisoners
,” notes Yalchin Imanov, an Azerbaijani lawyer interviewed by Forbidden Stories. “
It's like the old Soviet buildings in Azerbaijan: the facades have been repainted, but when you look behind, it's still so degraded.
»
On the Azerbaijani side, we also welcome the progress made within the framework of this cooperation. “
We have done a lot of things and we have achieved convincing results to improve the human rights situation
,” declared Azerbaijan’s ambassador to France. Questioned by our colleagues from France 24, Leyla Abdullayeva completely denies the accusations of torture and ill-treatment in the country's detention centers, assures that the elections are organized in a free and transparent manner and that, if journalists and opponents have been incarcerated, it is because they violated the law.
Opacity and embarrassment at the Council of Europe
However, at the Strasbourg headquarters of the Council of Europe, embarrassment seems to overtake all our interlocutors as soon as Azerbaijan and this Action Plan are discussed. In any case, it was impossible for us to obtain an interview with one of those responsible for the program – neither in Strasbourg nor in Baku where the Azerbaijani Office of the Council is located. Questioned in the corridors of the Palais de l'Europe, on the sidelines of the plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly, the Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic hits the ground running on all questions. We will not obtain the list of Azerbaijani NGOs that have benefited from the program – crucial information in a country where corruption is endemic, and where the few independent NGOs are either prosecuted or harassed by the authorities. Asked about the risk of using fake NGOs, the office of the Secretary General of the Council of Europe assures that it only works with organizations selected on the “
basis of a public and transparent tender procedure
. » We will not learn more in Baku, where the Azerbaijani authorities do not answer any of the questions addressed to them.
This opacity and the weakness of the controls carried out
a posteriori
by the European institutions are what the French MEP Ilana Cicurel, member of the budgetary control committee within the European Parliament, continues to denounce. “
It is not possible that European funds are officially paid to improve the human rights situation in Azerbaijan and that we arrive at the opposite result
,” protests MEP Renew, author of a report devoted to the control of funds Europeans. “
Symbolically, this does a lot of harm to Europe and the confidence we can have in it. Teams should be sent to the site to find out a little more about the NGOs which obtained the funds, to find out the latest beneficiaries. Instead, we must make do with the information presented to us.
»
Same incomprehension on the part of human rights NGOs who tirelessly criticize the attacks on freedoms and human dignity by the Azerbaijani regime. “
The funds that European governments contribute to this Action Plan, through the Council of Europe, should be used for justice and an end to impunity in cases of torture. Unfortunately, this is not what we are witnessing,
denounces Giorgi Gogia for Human Rights Watch
. Europe should set conditions for this funding. And Azerbaijan should publicly condemn acts of torture and ill-treatment. Any aid to its judicial and prison system should be conditional on a real improvement of this system.
»
“Caviar diplomacy”
For Azerbaijan, the benefit of this cooperation is obvious: it is not a question of obtaining financing which the country, rich in natural resources, hardly needs. But to be “cleared” of these abuses by this dialogue with the Council of Europe. “
Beyond money, it is very often the symbol that counts
,” underlines Ilana Cicurel
, “and the objective is to obtain the logo, the European credentials.
» Despite repeated and documented human rights violations, the country can therefore rely on this European cooperation to improve its image. “
All this changes nothing and is of no use
,” explains former ambassador Arif Mammadov, a connoisseur of the Aliyev regime.
But this allows Azerbaijan to say that it is working with Europe. This allows European bureaucrats to take notes. Then everyone congratulates each other and goes to the restaurant to celebrate.
» The ex-diplomat knows what he is talking about, since he himself was one of the cogs in the Azerbaijani diplomatic machine, before distancing himself. A diplomacy which has long relied on the corruption of European elected officials, before the outbreak of “Caviargate” in the mid-2010s – a resounding scandal which led to the exclusion of around ten members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, alongside Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev during the signing of an agreement on gas deliveries to the EU, July 18, 2022. © European Commission
And then there is gas… Coveted by the European Union to the point that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the country as a “
trustworthy partner
” during a trip to Ilham Aliyev at the summer 2022. A trip during which the former German Minister of Defense signed an agreement aimed at doubling, by 2027, deliveries of Azerbaijani gas to Europe. And a visit which attracted numerous criticisms. “
It is an understatement to say that this announcement chills anyone who knows the use made by the dictatorship at the head of Azerbaijan of gas revenue products
”, wrote July 29, 2022 in
the columns of Le
Monde
around fifty elected officials from all sides.
“
When the President of the Commission speaks of Azerbaijan as a reliable partner, she does so only within the framework of this energy agreement
,” explains Peter Stano, Commission spokesperson for international affairs. “
And, in fact, Azerbaijan is a reliable partner, unlike Russia which used gas deliveries as a geopolitical weapon.
»The Commission recognizes that there are “
concerns
” regarding respect for human rights, but that it does not avoid the subject and that it raises it whenever possible. “
However, Azerbaijan is a partner, not an enemy,”
continues Peter Stano.
It is a country emerging from 70 years of communist totalitarianism, and it is still a semi-authoritarian regime. If you want it to change, you can ignore it or collaborate with them… Our logic is to be able to tell them that they can do things differently.
»
"
Enough is enough ! »
Within the Council of Europe, however, the subject is beginning to arouse indignation, after years of inertia and complacency. "
Enough is enough !
», exclaims the German MP Frank Schwabe, who proposed, on January 22 at the opening of the winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), not to ratify the powers of the Azerbaijani delegation, in other words to suspend its participation in the work of the Assembly. “
Azerbaijan's prisons are full of political prisoners and elections are not organized according to our standards; NGOs, human rights activists and journalists cannot act freely: the Council of State can no longer turn a blind eye to this situation
,” declared Luxembourg MP Yves Cruchten, also in favor of suspension. “
For all these years, Azerbaijan has made absolutely no progress
,” thunders the PACE member, “
and it is clear to me that he has no intention of doing anything about it, quite the contrary! We must tell our Azerbaijani colleagues that we are not just a club of happy parliamentarians, but that we take our mission very seriously when it comes to human rights.
»
Frank Schwabe, German MP in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, supports the suspension of the Azerbaijani delegation. © Council of Europe
Anticipating a negative vote, the delegation of Azerbaijan takes the lead and announces “
to end its commitment within PACE until further notice, in the face of the unbearable atmosphere of racism, Azerbaijanophobia and Islamophobia within the Assembly.
”For the head of the delegation Samad Seyidov, human rights are only a pretext: Azerbaijan is punished for having recovered, by force of arms, the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.
On January 24, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe excluded the twelve parliamentarians from Azerbaijan, by 76 votes for and 10 against, the country having "not
fulfilled the major commitments of its membership in the Council of the Europe 20 years ago
. Azerbaijan is excluded from PACE for a year, but not from the Committee of Ministers, the decision-making body of the Council, of which it remains a “full” member. Only Russia (on several occasions until its exclusion in 2022), Turkey in 1980 (following the military coup) and Greece "of the colonels" in the 1960s, had been placed in a similar situation .
An “Action Plan” budgeted until 2025
“
This is a
historic moment
,” rejoices Gerald Knaus, president of the European Stability Initiative think tank, whose work in the early 2010s revealed the extent of “caviar diplomacy”. A victory which would not have been possible a few years ago, believes the German researcher, given the inertia of the PACE and the corruption of some of its members. “
Azerbaijan no longer has the levers and support that would have allowed it to put an end to all this
,” explains Gerald Knaus.
Until now, the country could have had the feeling of total impunity, this is no longer the case.
»
There remains the question of this European cooperation with a judicial system which tolerates the practice of torture contrary to all the principles of the Council of Europe. The “Action Plan for Azerbaijan”, financed by European funds, will continue since it is budgeted until 2025, even as the country continues to repress the opposition and track down NGOs and independent journalists. “
I have nothing against cooperation programs, quite the contrary, and it is not up to me to decide
,” declares German MP Franck Schwabe
. But it seems to me completely pointless and senseless to spend all this money given that there has not been a millimeter of progress in Azerbaijan in all these years in terms of respect for human rights. On the contrary, we have only seen a setback, which means that these action plans have been of no use.
»
“
Azerbaijan can get away with anything, including throwing opponents and journalists into prison a few weeks before a presidential election
,” notes Giorgi Gogia, of the NGO Human Rights Watch, with a touch of bitterness in his opinion. voice. “
The country knows that it will get away with it, since Europe needs its gas reserves.
» Same disappointment, same incomprehension, for the young opponent Mahammad Mirzali, who continues to risk his life for having denounced the corruption of the elites in his country. “
Europe stopped buying gas from Putin, and now it is buying it from Aliyev!” She went from a big dictator to a little dictator... But she continues to make the same mistakes: she continues to support, help, and ultimately preserve a dictatorship.
»
Testimony from the mother of a victim
01:20
Testimony from the mother of a victim
Daniel Vallot
*
According to information collected by the Institute for Peace and Democracy, a human rights NGO specializing in Azerbaijan, at least fifteen Azerbaijani opponents in exile have suffered attacks and assassination attempts since 2017, in France, Germany, Belgium, Georgia, Switzerland, the United States and Turkey. Three of them died in suspicious circumstances (drowning, falling from the roof of a hotel).
► Investigation by Daniel Vallot with the contribution of Youssr Youssef, Leyla Mustafayeva, Mariana Abreu and Laurent Richard (Forbidden Stories), Roméo Langlois and Karina Chabour (France 24), Lucas Brouwers and Wilmer Heck (NRC)
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