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In the Bertelsmann Transformation Index, Armenia ranks 64th out of the 129 countries presented. The index was compiled by Bertelsmann, a non-profit foundation in Germany.

Georgia ranks 45th, Turkey 23rd, Iran 118th and Azerbaijan 95th.

According to the report the year 2013 was crucial for Azerbaijan: President Aliyev was re-elected a third time after the two-term limit was lifted in 2009. This marked an unprecedented case in the region and highlighted the Azerbaijani regime’s intention of gradually transitioning the country into a Central Asian autocracy. Azerbaijan is an authoritarian state with democratic institutions existing only nominally. In reality, all power is vested in the hands of the executive.

Aliyev launched a major crackdown, in which he arrested political opponents, civil society leaders, heads of local NGOs, and prominent human rights activists. In addition, the bank accounts of independent NGOs were frozen, prominent international donors were forced out of the country, legislation on donor’s activities was tightened, criminal investigations against them were launched, and pressure on independent media was heightened. The ongoing crackdown had a negative effect on Azerbaijan’s relations with its Western partners and caused mounting criticism from the international media, the Foundation points out.

The Nagorno Karabakh conflict, which escalated in 2014, threatened stability in Azerbaijan as well. In order to boost nationalism, the Azerbaijani government intensified its belligerent rhetoric and several major breaches of the cease-fire occurred. In November, during military drills in Nagorno Karabakh Republic, Azerbaijan shot down a military helicopter of the Defence Army of the NKR.

In addition, some ethnic minorities have expressed resentment against the rise of Turkic nationalism among the majority population after the collapse of the Soviet Union. While the government does not tolerate independent religious groups, it uses the country’s Islamic identity as a political tool in both domestic and foreign policies. For these ends, the semi-official Caucasus Islamic Board, headquartered in Baku, and the State Committee for Work with Religious Communities are used as policy agencies.

The state provides the basic services through its fully functioning bureaucratic system, although the quality and standards of these services are not sufficiently advanced. A well-functioning informal hierarchy of power exists in the government structure. Each of the powerful oligarchs supervises several ministries, according to the report.

Throughout the years, the government has consistently limited space for political competition. Airtime for candidate debates on state TV and radio has shrunk significantly. The costs of airing campaign ads have skyrocketed, making them unaffordable for the economically strangled opposition. Distributors of leaflets on the streets are harassed, intimidated and taken to police stations. Rallies are only allowed in places designated by the government, which are usually inconvenient, hard-to-reach locations. All of these restrictions, combined with other types of pressures, including intimidation and harassment of activists, have significantly reduced the challenging power of the systematically weakened opposition parties. Election days are marred by multiple voting, ballot stuffing, interference with vote counting and other irregularities, Bertelsmann Foundation notes.

It also highlights that the president exercises control over the governance of Azerbaijan. Parliament and local municipal representatives, despite being nominally elected by the people, remain passive participants in the governance process. Yet, the entrenched interests of the state elite, who are the so-called
oligarchs/government ministers and other high-ranking officials, limit the president’s power.

The Chief of Staff Ramiz Mehdiyev is the second most powerful person after the president. Since the death of former president Heydar Aliyev, Ramiz Mehdiyev has enjoyed more autonomy in comparison with the other oligarchs. Parliament members are often protégés and relatives of oligarchs. Since the 2010 parliamentary elections, no opposition to the ruling party remains in the parliament. Traditionally, two major regional groups tied to the regime have dominated the system, according to BTI.

All of the specially designated venues for press conferences and roundtables are under the control of government officials, and they use both administrative and financial methods to restrict access by independents and government critics to these places. Sealed by the law enforcement in 2014, the office of the Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS), was the last easily accessible place for the opposition and critical-of-government civil society groups to hold press conferences and roundtables. The government also pressures hotels and other venues in downtown and other central parts of Baku not to provide opposition parties and independent NGOs with space to hold their events. Trade unions are also fully controlled by the government.

Despite this, there were several protest rallies held in some provincial locations sparked by the widespread corruption.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, there are numerous jailed journalists in Azerbaijan. Among them is the most prominent investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova, who was detained on dubious charges.
Television stations in the country are fully controlled by the government. Independent voices do not have access to television to express their opinions. Azerbaijani services of foreign broadcasting agencies, such as the Voice of America, BBC and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty remain off air, since they were banned from broadcasting on FM waves in early 2009. However, since then, they have continued delivering information via Internet.

In December 2014, government law enforcement representatives raided and sealed the local office of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, based on trumped up tax evasion charges. Only one opposition print media outlet, Azadliq, continues operation, while others gave in to governmental pressure by largely reducing their critiques of the government. Informal restrictions were imposed on Azadliq Newspaper, and it was fined large sums on charges of “defamation.”

Legal amendments that limit access to information were introduced after investigative journalists revealed widespread corruption linked to the ruling clan. Azerbaijan’s freedom of press dramatically decreased, according to various reports by organisations such as the Freedom House and Reporters Without Borders.
Although serious criticism of social problems had been growing in social media, the government’s increased repression and large-scale persecution of activists has resulted in self-censorship and a decline in criticism, Bertelsmann Foundation points out.

On several occasions, journalists have been attacked and beaten. Bloggers who criticise the government, especially those on Facebook, are constantly pressured, persecuted, jailed and so on. Repressions have also led to ordinary citizens feeling the climate of fear.

In the past few years, investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova, who is currently in prison, published a number of reports, as part of the Organised Crime Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) disclosing the offshore businesses of high-ranking officials, as well as their involvement in corrupt practices in local Azerbaijani businesses.

Azerbaijan’s legal framework does not specifically ban discrimination based on sexual orientation. Nor does it mention protection of the LGBT community. Thus, there is still a serious infringement of rights of LGBT citizens. Police brutality remains a common occurrence, and often involves humiliation, physical violence, et cetera. As a result, LGBT citizens often do not report acts of intimidation towards them, due to fear of police brutality, harassment and, most importantly, social stigma, the Foundation highlights in the report.