United Nations experts raise questions for Azerbaijan about how imprisoned Abzas Media journalists are being treated

United Nations representatives and working groups recently contacted the government of Azerbaijan to discuss the imprisonment and reported mistreatment of female journalists working for the independent news outlet Abzas Media. High-level officials like Mary Lawlor, Irene Khan, and Alice Jill Edwards sent a joint message sharing their serious worries about how Sevinj Vaqifqizi, Nargiz Absalamova, and Elnara Gasimova are being held and treated by the justice system. This inquiry points to a broader trend of authorities putting pressure on reporters who look into major corruption and human rights issues.

The main issue for the UN involves the living conditions at the Baku Investigative Detention Center, where the journalists stayed until late 2025. The UN experts noted that the reporters had to deal with terrible situations, coping with things like damp walls, bad air circulation, and a lack of everyday medical and hygiene supplies. Things grew worse over time. For example, the women started a hunger strike because their director, Ulvi Hasanli, was moved to a distant prison facility. In response to the strike, they were apparently put in solitary cells without windows or fresh air. The government was also asked to respond to claims that the journalists were physically hurt and had their personal items taken while being transported.

People around the world are also looking closely at the court proceedings. After a trial in June 2025 at the Baku Grave Crimes Court, Sevinj Vaqifqizi and Ulvi Hasanli were given nine years behind bars. Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova were handed eight-year sentences. Some of their colleagues, like Hafiz Babali and Farid Mehralizade, got long sentences too, facing charges such as tax evasion and smuggling money. The reporters have denied doing anything wrong from the start. They argue they were locked up simply as payback for looking into government corruption.

To make matters harder on their families, both practically and emotionally, officials moved the women to a prison in Lankaran, which is about 250 kilometers south of Baku. The UN experts pointed out that the journalists were only given an hour to prepare for this move. It looks like a strategy to cut them off from their lawyers and relatives. The officials warned that moves like this cast a shadow over civil society, and it might discourage other reporters and activists from trying to uncover corruption in the country.

The UN is now asking the government of Azerbaijan to explain the facts and legal reasons behind these prison sentences. They also want to understand how these actions fit with international human rights guidelines. The government has 60 days to show what they are doing to protect free speech. They also need to explain if their punishments, by using solitary confinement and moving prisoners far away, actually follow the UN's basic rules for treating people in prison. While the rest of the world waits to hear back, this situation continues to be a major example of the problems facing press freedom in the area.