CPJ joined 10 other civil society organizations on Wednesday in urging the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to further pressure Azerbaijan over its “grave human rights situation” and to stop its crackdown on critical voices.

In January, PACE voted to exclude Azerbaijan’s delegation because the country had not “fulfilled major commitments” on human rights and democracy. The September 25 statement calls for “clear criteria that Azerbaijan should meet before its delegation can be readmitted to the assembly.”

PACE is the parliamentary arm of the 46-member Council of Europe, an international human rights body based in Strasbourg, France. Its autumn plenary opens on September 30.

Read the full joint statement here.

This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by CPJ Staff.

This post was originally published on Radio Free.