Freedom House: Karabakh remains “freer” than Azerbaijan

Freedom House: Karabakh remains “freer” than Azerbaijan –

Nagorno-Karabakh remains a “partly free” territory as opposed to the “not free” rating of Azerbaijan, Freedom House, a United States-based watchdog, said in an annual survey released this week. 

Freedom House evaluated “political rights” and “civil liberties” in 195 countries and 13 disputed territories, including Nagorno-Karabakh, on a 7-point scale, with 1 representing the most free and 7 the least free. 

It again described Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia as “partly free”, while keeping Azerbaijan in the “not free” category.

While Nagorno-Karabakh’s freedom score remained unchanged at 5, Freedom House experts downgraded Azerbaijan’s to 6. They said it reflected “an intensified crackdown on dissent, including the imprisonment and abuse of human rights advocates and journalists” in Azerbaijan. 

Nagorno-Karabakh broke free from Baku’s control as a result of the 1991-1994 war. Azerbaijan still does not recognize the right of Nagorno-Karabakh’s Armenians to live as an independent country.