Sevinj Vagifgizi

Sevinj Vagifgizi or Sevinj Vagif gizi Abbasova (Sevinc Vaqif qızı Abbasova; born 5 July 1989) is an Azerbaijani reporter, journalist and political prisoner. She has worked in independent mass media for more than 15 years. In 2022, she became the editor-in-chief of the independent media platform Abzas Media.

Sevinj Vagifgizi, who during her journalistic activities was repeatedly subjected to harassment and pressure, was detained and was prohibited from leaving Azerbaijan for five years, was detained by police at the airport on the night of November 20–21, 2023, when she was returning from Istanbul. In Azerbaijan, a criminal case was opened against her on charges of "smuggling". Her arrest was heavily criticized by many local and international human rights activists and organizations.

Early years
Sevinj Vagif gizi Abbasova was born on July 5, 1989, in the Fuzuli District. After the occupation of the Fuzuli District during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in August 1993, she began to live as a refugee with her family. In 1995–2006 she studied at secondary school No. 297 named after E. Aliyev, Binagadi District, and in 2006–2010 she studied at the Faculty of Journalism of Baku State University.

Journalistic activity
Sevinj Vagifgizi began working as a journalist during her student years. In 2009–2013, Sevinj Vagifgizi worked for the newspaper "Bizim Yol" (Our Road), in 2012–2013 – for the newspaper "Azadlıq" (Freedom), and in 2013 she began working as a video reporter for Meydan TV.

On the night of September 20, 2015, Sevinj Vagifgizi, together with journalists Aytan Farhadova and Izolda Aghayeva, were detained by police at the airport and taken to the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. She was repeatedly interrogated by the Serious Crimes Investigation Department as part of the criminal case brought against Meydan TV. The persecution of journalists by the Azerbaijani government was then criticized by Human Rights Watch (HRW). Despite being interrogated as a witness in a criminal case, in 2015–2019 she was banned from leaving Azerbaijan.

In 2018, Sevinj Vagifgizi was sued for materials exposing a fraud scheme in the presidential elections.

Sevinj Vagifgizi was detained by police during her professional activities in January 2019 and released after more than 10 hours of detention at the 24th police department of the Nizami district police department.

On February 11, 2020, a sit-in took place by a group of parliamentary candidates and social activists protesting against the results of the parliamentary elections. The rally was dispersed by the police, who used force in front of the administrative building of the Central Election Commission. Sevinj Vagifgizi, who was engaged in her professional activities, was detained by the police and was wounded in the arm and face. In an interview with Voice of America, Sevinj Vagifgizi spoke about what happened: ''“The police grabbed me from behind and threw me into the bus of a special police regiment. On the bus they used very rude words, insulted each of us, even insulted our parents. Then they demanded my phone... I told them that my things were left in the car and that they should look in my pockets. One of them started shouting “give me the phone.” Then he grabbed my arm and twisted it. He twisted and held my hand for five minutes. Then another policeman came up and punched me in the eye. After keeping us on the bus for 20 minutes, they let us go to Bailovo.”'' Sevinj Vagifgizi also stated that when she went to the hospital for a medical examination after the incident, the police did not allow doctors to provide her with the results of the X-ray. Sevinj Vagifgizi appealed to the Prosecutor General's Office with a request to identify and punish those responsible for this incident. Reporters Without Borders strongly condemned the incident and said that the Azerbaijani government had destroyed pluralism.

She conducted investigative journalism with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP).

Sevinj Vagifgizi has been the editor-in-chief of Abzas Media since September 2022. Abzas Media is an independent media platform known for investigating the business of government officials in Azerbaijan, including alleged cases of corruption in reconstruction work in Karabakh since 2020. During 2022–2023, Abzas Media conducted a study of family members of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, head of the Presidential Security Service Baylar Eyyubov, head of the State Security Service Ali Naghiyev, including published materials on tenders related to the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and PASHA Holding. Also featured in the "Unsolved Crimes" series are former metro chief Taghi Ahmadov[21], former rector of the Baku Slavic University Nurlana Aliyeva,[22] former commander of the 1st Army Corps Hikmat Hasanov, former mayor of Baku Hajibala Abutalybov, former deputy Elmira Akhundova, former Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Huseyngulu Baghirov and current Minister of Finance Samir Sharifov were also provided with research materials on uninvestigated crimes.

Arrest
On November 20, 2023,CEO of Abzas Media-Ulvi Hasanli was detained near his home while heading to the airport to travel abroad. Hasanli was taken to the Main Police Department of Baku city, where searches were carried out both at his home and at the Abzas Media office. According to Zibeyda Sadygova, who defends Hasanli's rights, during a 5-hour search in the office, the police allegedly discovered 40 thousand euros. Abzas Media rejected these accusations, calling them "a scenario created to support Ulvi Hasanli’s accusations." Hasanli claimed that the questions asked to him by the police related to investigations carried out by Abzas Media. As a result, Ulvi Hasanli was arrested and charged with "smuggling."

On the night of November 20–21, the editor-in-chief of Abzas Media Sevinj Vagifgizi returned to Azerbaijan from Istanbul, knowing that she would be arrested. She was detained by police at Heydar Aliyev International Airport. On the same day, a search was carried out in her apartment. Lawyer Elchin Sadigov, who defended the rights of Sevinj Vagifgizi, stated that no illegal items were found during the search. However, a criminal case was opened against her under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code (smuggling – committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy). On November 21, Sevinj Vagifgizi was sentenced by the Khatai District Court to 3 months and 29 days of pre-trial detention.

International human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch (HRW),  Reporters Without Borders (RSF),  Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ),  the European Federation of Journalists, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, the Steering Committee of the Civil Society Forum of the Eastern Partnership and Freedom Now, as well as the US State Department condemned the arrest of Sevinj Vagifgyzy. They called on the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release her.