WNAM REPORT: Sabina Aliyeva, the Human Rights Commissioner (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has addressed an open letter to Tirana Hassan, the Executive Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW).as per reports that the letter criticizes the section of HRW’s 2024 report that pertains to Azerbaijan, citing a biased and one-sided approach against the country.
Aliyeva highlights that, while preparing the report, HRW relied on dubious and biased sources instead of referring to publicly available annual and parallel reports that comprehensively detail the Ombudsman’s activities in protecting human rights and freedoms, including preventing torture. The letter also mentions that members of the Ombudsman’s National Preventive Group met with several individuals cited in HRW’s report and found no evidence of torture or mistreatment.
Additionally, the letter points out that HRW’s report failed to acknowledge Azerbaijan’s significant achievements, such as the effective discussions and crucial decisions made during COP29, which Azerbaijan hosted to address the consequences of climate change. The report also overlooked Azerbaijan’s efforts to safely and dignifiedly reintegrate former internally displaced persons (IDPs) into their homes after ending Armenia’s occupation policy, which had grossly violated the fundamental rights and freedoms of over one million Azerbaijanis.
Moreover, the Ombudsman’s letter emphasizes the long-standing issues of landmines posing significant threats to people’s lives and health and the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from Armenia. These crucial issues were ignored in HRW’s report, leading to a display of double standards against Azerbaijan.
Ombudsman Sabina Aliyeva calls on Human Rights Watch to adopt an impartial approach, ensure fairness, and base their reports on verified facts when preparing their assessments.
