BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 1. The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson) of Azerbaijan Sabina Aliyeva has addressed an open letter of protest to the Secretary General of the Amnesty International Agnès Callamard, a source in the Ombudsman’s Office told Trend.
According to the letter, the inclusion of untruthful, one-sided, and biased information about our country in the 2024 report on the state of human rights around the world, published on the official website of the mentioned organization, once again proves that the organization is far from the principles of objectivity and justice in the field of human rights.
Meanwhile, contrary to the report’s claims, it was noted that the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP29) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, hosted by Azerbaijan last year, was highly inclusive, with wide-ranging representation and active participation of civil society representatives.
It was also noted that had Amnesty International adhered to principles of fairness while preparing the report, attention would have been given to the issue of the return of more than 250,000 Azerbaijanis forcibly displaced from Armenia since 1987. The importance of Armenia fulfilling its international obligations and providing guarantees for the safe and dignified return of Azerbaijanis to their former places of residence is emphasized.
The letter also mentioned the serious threats to human rights and freedoms caused by Armenia’s landmine terrorism in Azerbaijan’s liberated territories, as well as the lack of any information from Armenia regarding the fate of nearly 4,000 Azerbaijanis who went missing during the First Karabakh War. It stresses that the omission of such facts reflects a serious bias and double standards in the organization’s approach to human rights issues.
Furthermore, the letter expressed regret that Amnesty International failed to reference information regarding the Ombudsman’s activities within the framework of the National Preventive Mechanism, which monitors the protection of detainees’ rights, their detention conditions, and health status. It notes that the Ombudsman institution is always open to verifying any information regarding detainees and regularly shares the results of its investigations with the public.
In conclusion, the ombudsperson calls on all organizations, including international non-governmental organizations, to respect universally recognized principles of international law when preparing human rights reports, to uphold the principles of fairness and impartiality, and to rely solely on objective and verified facts.
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