The Council of Europe and the OSCE recalled political prisoners in Azerbaijan and Georgia.

On International Day of Political Prisoners, the Council of Europe and the OSCE drew attention to the cases of those convicted on political grounds in Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Russia, calling for their release and targeted sanctions against human rights violators.

As reported by the Caucasian Knot, in 2024, the number of political prisoners in Azerbaijan exceeded 300 for the first time since the early 2000s. On October 7, the Union for Freedom of Political Prisoners in Azerbaijan published a new national list of political prisoners, including 392 names.

The General Rapporteur on political prisoners of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), Azadeh Rojkhan (Sweden, Socialist Group), and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly Special Representative on political prisoners, Steve Cohen (USA), issued a joint statement on the occasion of International Day of Political Prisoners, which is celebrated on October 30.

"In his letter from prison, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. On this International Day of Political Prisoners, these words remind us of our universal responsibility to those deprived of their liberty to defend truth, freedom, and human dignity. Today, we honor the memory of the many people around the world whose voices are silenced by prison walls. Their courage in the face of oppression embodies the principles on which our societies are built: the fundamental rights to freedom of speech, dissent, information, and participation in public life without fear or reprisal," they said in a press release from the Council of Europe's Communications Department received by the Caucasian Knot.

The struggle for freedom is not isolated by national borders, Rozhkhan and Cohen noted. "From Minsk to Moscow, from Tbilisi to Baku, stories of repression continue." "We observe with deep concern the continued detention of Ales Bialiatski, Nobel Peace Prize laureate in Belarus, and Alexei Gorinov in Russia. These courageous individuals embody humanity and unwavering convictions, serving as beacons of light in the darkness of an authoritarian regime. We also commend the exceptional courage of Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize nominees Mzia Amagobeli in Georgia and Ulvi Hasanli in Azerbaijan, journalists imprisoned for their commitment to truth and justice," the statement from the Council of Europe and the OSCE read.

“These are just a few names among thousands. The plight of political prisoners is an indictment of regimes that suppress opposition and criminalize dissent,” Roshhan and Cohen emphasized.

Representatives of the Council of Europe and the OSCE called on all states to fulfill their international obligations, investigate abuses, and release those detained on politically motivated charges.

“Where justice is denied, collective action is needed – whether through diplomatic engagement, principled advocacy, or targeted sanctions against rights violators.” (...). We remain committed to a world in which no one is persecuted for speaking truth to power,” the document concludes.