When representatives from nearly 200 countries, along with hundreds of journalists, arrive in Azerbaijan in November for the UN climate change conference known this year as COP29, they will bring a level of scrutiny the hosts are not used to — and not often tolerate.

Azerbaijan has had a poor human rights record for many years, and the government has regularly targeted independent journalists, activists and politicians. President Ilham Aliyev and his administration are accused by rights groups of leading an increasingly intense crackdown on free speech ahead of the climate summit, including against climate activists and journalists.

Aliyev’s father, Haidar, ruled Azerbaijan from 1993 until he died in 2003, and Ilham took over. Both have suppressed dissent as the Caspian Sea country of nearly 10 million has enjoyed growing wealth from huge oil and natural gas reserves.

Elections since independence from the Soviet Union in the 1990s have not been considered entirely free or fair. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said Azerbaijan’s most recent parliamentary elections in September took place in a “restrictive” environment. They were marked by a turnout of 37% and no opposition party won any seats.

Human Rights Watch said the “vicious” crackdown on journalists and human rights activists has intensified over the past two years, with false criminal charges against critics and highly restrictive laws that make it difficult for media and activists to work.

Ahead of COP29, authorities in Azerbaijan extended the pretrial detention of at least 11 journalists from Azerbaijan’s remaining independent news outlets on charges of currency smuggling related to alleged funding from Western donors.

Azerbaijani government officials did not respond to multiple requests from The Associated Press for an interview or comment on their actions.

A look at just five of Baku’s critics currently held in Azerbaijan:

Hasalni and Vagifgizi are journalists and leaders of Abzas Media, an independent online channel. Abzas Media investigated reports of protests and pollution at a gold mine in western Azerbaijan, reconstruction in the Karabakh region and allegations of corruption against high-ranking officials.

Hasanli and Vagifgizi, along with four colleagues, were arrested in November 2023. Azeri officials allege they conspired to smuggle money into Azerbaijan and claim to have found more than $40,000 in Hasanli’s home. The journalists deny the allegations, and Hasanli said the money was planted.

“That’s why they decided to eliminate Ulvi and his team … to make sure they can no longer expose their wrongdoings,” Rubaba Guliyeva, Hasanli’s wife, told The Associated Press.

Hasanli and Vagifgizi are imprisoned in Baku without trial. Guliyeva called conditions there “extremely bad” and said she saw bruises on her husband and was told their meetings and phone calls were being monitored. Hasanli is allowed brief visits with his 2-year-old daughter, but fights when he leaves, his wife said.

Vagifgizi’s mother, Ophelia Maharramova, said the prison has a water shortage and that the water is not drinkable. Prisoners are “suffering from hair loss and their teeth are rotting,” she said.

Despite being locked up, Vagifgizi still questions what investigations Abzas Media publishes, her mother said: “It’s what makes her feel motivated.”

Guliyeva said states should boycott COP29 because of Azerbaijan’s poor human rights record.

Ibadoghlu is an academic and economist at the London School of Economics who was detained in Azerbaijan in July 2023. He was moved to house arrest in April after spending months in prison.

He has been accused by Azerbaijan of selling counterfeit money, but his children dispute the charges. They believe he was targeted because he investigated corruption in Azerbaijan’s oil and gas industry and because he is an opposition figure. Ibadoghlu’s sons say he also set up a charity in the UK to work with Britain’s Home Office to try to transfer money seized by the National Crime Agency from wealthy Azerbaijanis to the charity for to serve the Azerbaijani people.

Ibadoghlu is also the chairman of the Movement for Democracy and Prosperity of Azerbaijan, which was denied registration as a political party in Azerbaijan.

His son, Emin Bayramov, told AP that his father was arrested by unidentified policemen who beat his mother when she asked who they were. Ibadoghlu has health problems, including diabetes, and his family says he is being denied medical care. Another son, Ibad Bayramov, told AP that the International Committee of the Red Cross tried to visit him four times but was not allowed to see him.