The European Union calls on Azerbaijan to release all those imprisoned for exercising their fundamental rights, Lead Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano said in a statement on Wednesday, May 29. “President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed on Saturday 25 May a decree pardoning 154 prisoners. This year, unlike in the past, the decree did not include persons sentenced for exercising their fundamental rights,” Stano said. In recent months, there has been a rise of arrests of independent journalists, human rights defenders, and political activists on politically motivated charges in Azerbaijan. Members of independent media, such as Abzas Media, Toplum TV, Kanal 11 and Kanal 13, political movements, such as III Republic Platform, labour rights groups, and other organisations, such the Institute for Democratic Initiatives, have been particularly targeted. Many of them have seen their pre-trial detentions extended multiple times. “The European Union continues to call on Azerbaijan to release all those imprisoned for exercising their fundamental rights, and to ensure dignified and safe conditions for detainees, including their full access to health and independent legal services. We remain particularly concerned by the health situation of Gubad Ibadoghlu and Alasgar Mammadli. We reiterate our call on the Azerbaijani authorities to lift Mr Ibadoghlu’s travel ban to allow him to get the medical treatment he urgently needs,” Stano said. “Civil society participation is at the centre of the UN Global Conference on Climate Change (COP 29), which Azerbaijan will host in November. COP 29 is an opportunity for Azerbaijan to reaffirm its commitment to its obligations under international law, and to create the conditions for the work of a free and independent civil society. This is also in line with Azerbaijan’s commitments as a member of the Eastern Partnership, as reiterated in the Eastern Partnership Summit Declaration of December 2021.”