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Azerbaijan is convicting exiled critics in absentia based on online activity, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Wednesday, with sentences reaching up to 16 years in prison.
HRW reviewed eight verdicts issued against Azerbaijani nationals living in Europe and the United States by the Baku Courts for Serious Crimes between July 2025 and March 2026. Prosecutors relied heavily on YouTube broadcasts and Facebook posts, with government-appointed forensic experts concluding the content constituted calls for the violent seizure of power or mass disorder. State-appointed defense lawyers had no contact with the absent defendants.
“These trials of government critics abroad lack all credibility and due process, and are simply intended to silence them,” said Giorgi Gogia, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at HRW. “Azerbaijani authorities appear to manufacture criminal cases from online speech so they can use them to pursue critics far beyond its borders,” he continued.
HRW highlighted two named cases. On February 18, the Baku Court for Serious Crimes convicted historian Altay Goyushov, who lives in France, for publicly calling for the violent seizure of power. It sentenced him to six years in prison based on a 2020 YouTube livestream and two Facebook posts discussing political uprisings in Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine. The same day, the court sentenced political analyst Arastun Oruclu to eight years on similar charges. Oruclu resides in New York and allegedly posted YouTube videos in which he said citizens should continue their fight for governmental accountability. In a separate case, seven defendants living in Germany, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom were convicted on December 25, 2025, with sentences ranging from nine to fourteen years.
The in absentia framework was enabled by amendments to Azerbaijan’s Criminal Procedures Code, which was adopted in December 2023, marking the first time the country permitted such proceedings. HRW warned that the convictions could be used as the basis for extradition requests, detention during international travel, or asset seizures. As a party to the European Convention on Extradition, Azerbaijan can invoke the convictions when requesting the return of individuals living in Europe.
The report comes amid years of documented crackdown. HRW has previously reported on convictions of journalists and civil society activists within the country, a crackdown on political opposition parties, a campaign waged against exiled critics, and earlier incidents of cross-border pressure on Azerbaijanis abroad. The Committee to Protect Journalists also documented similar in absentia sentences against exiled journalists. No response from Azerbaijani authorities to Wednesday’s report was immediately available.
HRW called on European governments to carefully scrutinize any extradition requests and to ensure that asylum and protection procedures account for the risk of politically motivated prosecution upon return.
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HRW reviewed eight verdicts issued against Azerbaijani nationals living in Europe and the United States by the Baku Courts for Serious Crimes between July 2025 and March 2026. Prosecutors relied heavily on YouTube broadcasts and Facebook posts, with government-appointed forensic experts concluding the content constituted calls for the violent seizure of power or mass disorder. State-appointed defense lawyers had no contact with the absent defendants.
“These trials of government critics abroad lack all credibility and due process, and are simply intended to silence them,” said Giorgi Gogia, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at HRW. “Azerbaijani authorities appear to manufacture criminal cases from online speech so they can use them to pursue critics far beyond its borders,” he continued.
HRW highlighted two named cases. On February 18, the Baku Court for Serious Crimes convicted historian Altay Goyushov, who lives in France, for publicly calling for the violent seizure of power. It sentenced him to six years in prison based on a 2020 YouTube livestream and two Facebook posts discussing political uprisings in Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine. The same day, the court sentenced political analyst Arastun Oruclu to eight years on similar charges. Oruclu resides in New York and allegedly posted YouTube videos in which he said citizens should continue their fight for governmental accountability. In a separate case, seven defendants living in Germany, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom were convicted on December 25, 2025, with sentences ranging from nine to fourteen years.
The in absentia framework was enabled by amendments to Azerbaijan’s Criminal Procedures Code, which was adopted in December 2023, marking the first time the country permitted such proceedings. HRW warned that the convictions could be used as the basis for extradition requests, detention during international travel, or asset seizures. As a party to the European Convention on Extradition, Azerbaijan can invoke the convictions when requesting the return of individuals living in Europe.
The report comes amid years of documented crackdown. HRW has previously reported on convictions of journalists and civil society activists within the country, a crackdown on political opposition parties, a campaign waged against exiled critics, and earlier incidents of cross-border pressure on Azerbaijanis abroad. The Committee to Protect Journalists also documented similar in absentia sentences against exiled journalists. No response from Azerbaijani authorities to Wednesday’s report was immediately available.
HRW called on European governments to carefully scrutinize any extradition requests and to ensure that asylum and protection procedures account for the risk of politically motivated prosecution upon return.
The post Rights organization criticizes Azerbaijan convictions of exiled critics in absentia over social media activity appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.