BUILDING BAKU: Modern Slavery in the Heart of Azerbaijan

Few authoritarian states have worked harder than Azerbaijan to leverage major international events to boost their image on the world stage.

Human rights and democracy advocates have decried the strategy as a “sportswashing” of a regime where opposition parties are crushed, journalists are imprisoned, and oil wealth is controlled by a small clique of ruling elites.

A new OCCRP investigation reveals the human cost of some of Azerbaijan’s projects — and the lengths the state has gone to protect its image when its complicity was unearthed.

Several marquee buildings in Baku, the country’s capital, were built or renovated by men from the Balkans who were shipped to Baku by a company connected to government officials. They were forced to work long hours in grueling conditions for almost no pay. Two died there; many others were marked forever by their time toiling far from home. This is their story.

Read the full investigation here: https://www.occrp.org/en/slaves-to-progress/

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Видео BUILDING BAKU: Modern Slavery in the Heart of Azerbaijan канала Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project