ArmInfo.Azerbaijan's human rights record did not improve in 2022. "In May, authorities released more than 20 individuals imprisoned on politically motivated and bogus charges. But at least 30 others remained wrongfully imprisoned while authorities continued to target its critics and other dissenting voices. Human Rights Watch said in a report on Azerbaijan for 2022.
It is noted that restrictive laws continued to impede nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from operating independently. "Other persistent human rights problems included systemic torture and ill- treatment in custody and restrictions on media freedoms. In July, amid an energy crisis spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its manipulation of the country's hydrocarbon supplies, the European Union signed a deal with Azerbaijan aimed at increasing the country's gas exports to Europe. The EU did not use ongoing negotiations on a broad bilateral agreement to secure human rights improvements," the authors of the report write.
The report also notes: "Authorities continued to use spurious drug charges to lock up political activists critical of the government. In many cases, the detainees reported ill-treatment in police custody, allegations that the authorities dismissed." "In February, President Ilham Aliyev signed a law on media that limits media independence by, among other things, barring non-residents from owning media and requiring journalists to have higher education, a formal contract, and three years' experience to obtain accreditation. The Council of Europe (CoE) commissioner for human rights, Dunja Mijatovic, said the law "overregulates the media : and grants discretionary powers to authorities : including through licensing, excessively restricting journalists' work, and introducing several limitations to : media companies and entities."," the authors of the report write. At the same time, HRW touched upon Azerbaijan's aggression against Armenia.
Human rights activists state that fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops broke out in mid-September, when Azerbaijan invaded Armenia. "Fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces broke out in mid-September when Azerbaijan made incursions into Armenia. The fighting marked one of several breakdowns of the Russia-brokered 2020 truce that ended hostilities over the unresolved Nagorno- Karabakh war. A video authenticated by Human Rights Watch showed the extrajudicial execution of at least seven Armenian soldiers, apparently by Azerbaijani forces, during this fighting," the Organization stressed.