Month: September 2013

TURKEY BEGINS RETRIAL OVER MURDER OF ARMENIAN JOURNALIST

Agence France Presse — English
September 17, 2013 Tuesday 3:47 PM GMT

ISTANBUL, Sept 17 2013

A court in Istanbul began a retrial on Tuesday over the murder of an
ethnic Armenian journalist, a case that has gripped the nation for
years and sparked accusations of state conspiracy.

Hrant Dink, who incurred the wrath of Turkish nationalists for calling
the World War I massacre of Armenians a genocide, was shot dead in
broad daylight in 2007 outside the offices of his bilingual weekly
newspaper Agos.

The killing of the 52-year-old sent shock waves across Turkey and
triggered a wider scandal after reports that state security forces
had known of the murder plot but failed to act.

An Istanbul court in 2011 sentenced Dink’s self-confessed killer Ogun
Samast to 23 years in jail. He was tried as a juvenile as he was only
17 at the time of the murder.

A year later, the court sentenced the so-called mastermind of the
murder, Yasin Hayal, to life in prison for inciting the killing but
acquitted 18 other defendants, ruling that there was no conspiracy.

In May, Turkey’s appeals court partially overturned the 2012 verdict.

It upheld the conviction for Hayal but ordered a retrial to look
into whether he and another 18 acquitted defendants belonged to a
criminal network.

Hayal and another seven of the defendants were being retried.

Hayal, who was the only defendant to attend Tuesday’s hearing,
criticised the appeals court’s decision. “I did not found or head a
criminal organisation,” he said.

>From the outset, Dink’s lawyers had demanded a new investigation
and a retrial to determine if there was a conspiracy behind the
journalist’s killing.

The appeals court in May stopped short of launching a deeper
investigation into the potential involvement of Turkey’s powerful
institutions.

Dink’s lawyers and human rights defenders believe that those behind
the murder were protected by the state because Dink had received
threats for a long time before he was killed, often writing about
them in his columns in Agos.

At Tuesday’s first hearing Dink’s lawyers called on the judges
to especially look into the possible implication of police and
paramilitary police.

“If you follow the ruling of the highest appeals court, all these
blanks in the investigation must be looked at,” said lawyer Bahri
Bayram Belen.

The names of the seven other suspects were not known to the public.

The next hearing will be held on December 3 giving all suspects time
to comment on the appeals court decision.

At the request of the prosecution the court on Tuesday ordered the
re-arrest of one of the acquitted suspects, Erhan Tuncel. He had
told the court during his earlier trial that he was an informer of
the paramilitary police.

Prosecutors now say they have new evidence in his case.

“Hrant Dink was killed… with instructions from public agents. The
state will continue to protect those public agents,” Gulten Kaya of
the Association of Friends of Hrant Dink said outside the courthouse.

‘We are all Armenians’

“The picture is clear… It is possible that the instigator and
its comrades will be sentenced for forming a gang,” she said while
claiming that the real conspirators behind the murder would get away
with the crime and even get promoted.

“The trial… will bring no justice.”

Dink’s family said they would no longer attend any hearings as the
court “spurns legal rights, fairness and honesty”.

A crowd of about 150 people, including three MPs from the pro-Kurdish
Peace and Democracy Party and two opposition Social Democratic
deputies, gathered outside the courthouse, chanting: “We are all Hrant,
we are all Armenians”, “For Hrant, for Justice” and “Stop this mock
trial, try those really responsible”.

Every year since Dink’s murder on January 19, 2007, thousands have
gathered outside Agos offices on that date to remember the journalist,
whose life-long campaign for reconciliation between Turks and Armenians
won him as many enemies as admirers.

Turkish nationalists especially resented that he qualified the
massacre of hundreds of thousands of Armenians in the final years
of the Ottoman empire, Turkey’s precursor, a genocide, a term Ankara
has always rejected.

nc-fo/gk/lc

PUTIN POLITICS, OR HOW BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU!

European Public Affairs, EU
Sept 18 2013

18 September 2013 | by Olesia Ogryzko

The Bible tells us to love our neighbours, and also to love our
enemies; probably because they are generally the same people.

-G.K. Chesterton

Hostile or not, neighbour relations are not the easiest. Especially if
the neighbour knows it better: knows the what, when and where for you.

So does Russia now. Big Brother is watching you! In this case:
the Eastern European space. The space which is not as hopeless as
this desperate East-Central Europe that after (as Mr. Putin says)
the biggest geopolitical tragedy (!) of the XX century, namely the
collapse of the Soviet Union, rushed to join the dark side – the
EU/NATO. Apparently, that side had more and better cookies to offer.

But the Kremlin will never admit that.

USSR.2.0 aka Customs Union is calling, baby!

Nonetheless, having lost these former allies, there are still a
few other fellows that can be persuaded not to make this “fatal
and suicidal” mistake. There is still hope to guide EU’s Eastern
Partnership countries (Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia
and Belarus) to the promising future, or shall we say back into the
future? USSR.2.0 aka Customs Union is calling, baby!

It is calling persistently, constantly and quite painfully in the
last couple of weeks. With the Eastern Partnership Summit imminently
approaching, Russia prefers sticks rather than carrots in its policy
towards its Western neighbours.

Sweet November

The summit, taking place in November in Vilnius, is of crucial
geopolitical significance not only for these six partner countries,
but also for Europe in general and, obviously, for Russia. There,
the future of the whole Eastern European dimension will be decided,
with its prospects and developments. The story around the Association
Agreement and FTA that might (or not) be signed with Ukraine, and
initialled with Moldova and Georgia will demonstrate EU’s vision of the
future of the Union: level of cooperation with the East, determination
of geographical boarders of Europe and general enlargement policy. For
the six countries concerned this will serve as a clear indicator of
whether they are welcome in the EU or not. In a negative scenario
they are likely to turn to Russia – a decision for many decades
ahead. At stake in Russia is the dominance over the last bits of
its former might, restoration of its ever fading imperial paranoia
and the successfulness of the Customs Union, which unites Russia,
Belarus and Kazakhstan now.

Henceforth, this upcoming event is a major milestone, forcing all
parties to prepare in their own way. Playing cool, the EU tries not to
show the fact that a successful Vilnius summit is as important for the
Union as it is for the Eastern partners. Thus, at times criticizing,
at times encouraging the “Eastern six”, the EU has kept a straight face
until recently. The partner-countries are hectically implementing all
the required reforms to correspond with EU standards, like students
feverishly completing the homework in the break before the lesson. And
Russia is doing what the logic of its political machinery tells it to
do: breaching the Helsinki Accords, WTO regulations and the Budapest
Memorandum all at once. Because Russia likes it big: if violate- then
in large amounts only. It is now pressuring the three “lucky ones”
being Ukraine, Moldova and Armenia, to dissuade them from “going West”.

Russia’s wakeup call

Russia’s art of persuasion takes the shape of economical, energy and
security threats. Let us start with the first. Creating artificial
trade obstacles, new cumbersome border checks, severe customs
restrictions, clearing detentions and unreasonable sample checks.

These actions, which Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt called
“economic warfare”, caused an almost complete (!) standstill of
Ukrainian exports to Russia – Ukraine’s major trade partner country,
by the way. Additionally, a ban on products from Ukraine’s major
confectionary producer as well as on Moldova’s wines and spirits is
still in force. As Putin’s advisor Sergei Glazyev kindly indicated,
this blockade is designed to demonstrate what will happen in the
event of signing the EU agreement.

The second threat is connected to Russia’s trump card – gas. “Energy
supplies are important in the run-up to winter, I hope you won’t
freeze” was a quite unambiguous remark to Moldova by senior envoy
Rogozin. A similar message was sent to Kyiv, consequently reminding
of the 2006 and 2009 gas supply cuts, severely hitting some of the
East-Central European countries dependant on Ukrainian transit.

The third threat deals with conflict resolutions. Both Moldova
and Armenia are facing frozen internal conflicts. Transnistria and
Nagorno-Kharabakh are their Achille’s heels, which Russia, being
a major security grantor in both cases, just could not resist. As
a result – we heard the official statement on behalf of Armenian
authorities that the country is joining the Customs Union instead of
pursuing the EU FTA pact. Thus, in geopolitical maths it is now 6-1.

EU’s response

Having gathered a critical mass of Russia’s violations (Syrian
sentiments undoubtedly contribute to Europe’s malice), the EU finally
decided to break the silence. Addressing Russia’s strong-arm tactics,
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso affirmed during
the annual state of the Union speech to the European Parliament:
“We cannot accept any attempt to limit these countries’ own sovereign
choices…We cannot turn our back on them”.

The European Parliament also decided to take action and adopted the
resolution “On the pressure exerted by Russia on the Easter Partnership
countries (in the context of the upcoming Eastern Partnership Summit
in Vilnius)” on the 12th September. Firmly rejecting these unacceptable
actions, the MEPs call on Russia to respect the sovereign right of the
nation states to pursue their own political aspirations. Supported by
all main parties, the text of the resolution appeals to the Commission,
Council and European External Action Service to take “concrete and
effective” measures in defence of the Union’s partners, as well as
view the developments as beyond a purely economic dimension, being
merely a cover for retaliation and political pressure. Moreover,
strong support for initialling and signing the agreement in November
with those willing and ready, has been reaffirmed.

What’s next?

As Commissioner Fule indicated, “if they [the Eastern Partnership
countries] become the subject of undue pressure because of exercising
their free choice, they can count on the solidarity [of the EU]”.

Together with EP’s resolution this is already a major political
signal. However, as we all know, actions speak louder than words. This
would be a perfect opportunity for the EU to demonstrate its capability
for crisis management and sticking to previously given political
commitments towards Eastern Europe.

Hence, having already “lost” the Armenian battle, what else is
the EU ready to sacrifice? What is the measure of “undue pressure”
for the EU to step in? And what exactly does “solidarity” imply in
this sense: another sharply-worded resolution or real sanctions? All
these questions should not be rhetorical if the EU wants the Eastern
Partnership to be its success story.

Related links:

NEW DINK TRIAL TO BEGIN AFTER COURT OF APPEALS RULING

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
Sept 16 2013

16 September 2013 /TODAY’S ZAMAN, Ä°STANBUL

Today, the Ä°stanbul 14th High Criminal Court will begin reviewing
a trial into the 2007 killing of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant
Dink after a decision by the Supreme Court of Appeals overturned the
Ä°stanbul court’s first ruling on the murder.

Dink, the late editor-in-chief of the Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos,
was shot dead on Jan. 19, 2007, by ultranationalist teenager Ogun
Samast outside the newspaper’s offices in Ä°stanbul in broad daylight.

Samast, tried in a juvenile court because he was a minor at the time
of the crime, was sentenced to nearly 23 years in prison. On Jan. 17,
2012, the Ä°stanbul 14th High Criminal Court gave another suspect in
the case, Yasin Hayal, a life sentence for inciting Samast to commit
murder. Erhan Tuncel, who worked as an informant for the Trabzon
Police Department, was found not guilty of the murder and acquitted.

The prosecutor of the first trial said that the murder was planned
and carried out by the Ergenekon terrorist organization, but the court
denied the existence of organized criminal activity in the murder.

The prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals later said that there
was a terrorist organization involved and that the state should
investigate it.

The 9th Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals in May ruled that there
was an organization involved, but said that it was a simple crime ring,
effectively denying that Ergenekon played any role in the murder.

Dink’s lawyers had submitted a petition to the Supreme Court of
Appeals, arguing that the lower court’s ruling violated the TCK by
acknowledging the existence of a criminal organization but declining
to investigate it, and that the court ignored evidence of a terrorist
organization.

As the verdict of the lower court was met with outrage by civil
society groups, politicians and others, tens of thousands of people
marched in protest in Ä°stanbul.

THE ‘FRIENDS OF HRANT’ AND THE ‘FRIENDS OF HIS MURDERER’

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 16 2013

NURAY MERT

My friend Hrant was killed six years ago, in front of his office,
a few minutes’ walk from my home. I was unfortunate enough to see his
body lying on the pavement. I ran to his office to get more information
right after I learned that he was attacked; at the time, I didn’t know
that he was killed there, less than half an hour beforehand. Needless
to say, it was a devastating moment, and since then, I have refrained
from talking and writing about the emotional part of this tragic
event. Besides, there were so many personal accounts about “being
one of Hrant’s friends.”

At first, I thought that the murderer could be a nationalist thug who
had acted individually in a politically suitable environment; even
if it had been so, it would have been horrible enough. After that,
however, we started to learn the details of the case and that it was an
orchestrated murder. The public outrage against Dink’s assassination
was the only consolation, as thousands marched at his funeral,
shouting, “We are all Armenians!” It seemed that the era was over
for those who thought that killing an Armenian could go unpunished.

Alas, seven years on, Dink’s outspoken lawyer, Fethiye Cetin, has
stated “we are behind the point that we were at before,” after a
long process of trials and verdicts. Tomorrow, another Dink trial
will begin after the Supreme Court of Appeals ruled that it was not
an individually motivated but organized crime.

Cetin, however, has stated that it is not an improvement but the
opposite, as the Supreme Court decided that the “organization behind
the crime” was limited to those who were already sentenced to prison.

It means that the court refuses to acknowledge or even question the
links between the murderers and the security services (and civil
bureaucracy) despite so much evidence provided by Dink’s lawyers.

The lawyers and the followers of the Dink case who call themselves
“Friends of Hrant” have made a public statement and called for “a
trial of those who are really responsible for the murder, not a show
trial.” In fact, it is not a call for justice just for Hrant, but
it has ultimate political significance. There is a lot of evidence
that hints that Hrant was murdered by a youth gang that had links to
the security services. Moreover, it was an initial court case against
Hrant and the public humiliation after the court’s verdict that paved
the way for his ultimate murder.

At the time (2006) the case against Dink was opened with reference
to one of his newspaper articles that he was accused of “publicly
insulting the Turkish nation” under controversial Article 301. The
Supreme Court of Appeals then approved the sentence (July 2006).

I am sure most of you know the whole story; I just want to note
that after all, one of the judges who approved the sentence when he
was a member of the Supreme Court, Mehmet Omeroglu, was elected as
ombudsman of Turkey on Nov. 27, 2012. In fact, there is no need for
further comment. So far, I have often refrained from writing my doubts
about the hopes of a fair trial in the Dink murder, since, from the
beginning, I was very skeptical about the supposed elimination of
the deep state in Turkey under the Justice and Development Party
(AKP) government. The Dink trial is very important for observing
what happened to the so-called “deep state” after the AKP altered the
status quo ante. So far, it seems that it is only the patrons of the
state that have changed and that there is still a very long way to go.

I never thought that skepticism should stop us from fighting for more
democracy and the rule of law; I always thought that skepticism was
an essential part of political criticism that works as a tool to put
more pressure on politicians.

Unfortunately, this is a country where “skepticism is confused with
cynicism” by democrats themselves. It was a fatal mistake, and now
we are paying the price. Still, we should keep going and asking for
justice to be done.

The Friends of Hrant should never give up until the judges feel truly
obliged to inquire who the “friends of Hrant’s murderer” were.

September/16/2013

HRANT DINK FOUNDATION AWARD GOES TO TURKEY’S SATURDAY MOTHERS

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 16 2013

ISTANBUL – Dogan News Agency

Turkey’s “Saturday mothers,” who have gathered every Saturday in
Istanbul for nearly 15 years to draw attention to their missing family
members, received the fifth International Hrant Dink Award on Sept.

15, which is named in honor of assassinated Turkish-Armenian journalist
Hrant Dink.

Serbian human rights activist Natasa Kandic, known for her
documentation of her country’s war crimes, was also awarded by this
year’s jury.

The Saturday Mothers have become familiar faces to those passing
down Ä°stiklal Avenue on Saturday mornings, as they have gathered for
more than 400 consecutive weeks at Galatasaray Square with pictures
of family members who went missing after being detained by security
forces or who died in unsolved murders, especially in the dark days
of the 1990s.

Every week, two or three relatives read a message or a poem for
their loved ones, while anybody who wishes can take part in the
demonstrations by holding a picture of one of the missing.

Hanım Tosun, İkbal Eren and Emine Ocak, who were among the pioneers
of the demonstrations, received the prize during the ceremony on behalf
of all Saturday Mothers. The three expressed hope that similar deaths
or disappearances will not occur again.

For her part, Kandic said she was proud to receive such a meaningful
prize in the memory of Dink. “Without empathy, there can be no peace,
with our past and with others. The only condition of peace is empathy,”
she said.

This year’s jury included past laureates such as sociologist Ä°smail
BeÅ~_ikci and Mexican journalist Lydia Cacho, as well as British
historian Timothy Garton Ash.

Costa-Gavras, a French filmmaker of Greek origin who came last year
to support demonstrations against the demolition of the iconic Emek
Movie Theater, was also part of this year’s jury.

September/16/2013

From: A. Papazian

JUSTICE AT HOME, JUSTICE IN THE WORLD

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Sept 18 2013

by SERKAN DEMÄ°RTAÅ~^

The government has all the right to seek justice in the name of the
more than 100,000 Syrians killed by the Bashar al-Assad regime since
March 2011, and to try to lead the international community to bring
those responsible to account. Calling for the punishment of al-Assad,
who allegedly wielded chemical weapons against civilians on Aug. 21,
is also in line with this very universal value of justice, as prominent
Turkish authorities frequently touch on.

Seeking justice for ousted President Mohamed Morsi of Egypt, for
Palestinians in Gaza who have long been suffering from an Israeli
embargo, and other examples, are also understandable for a country
that long ago declared itself an advocate of the sufferer, wherever
they are in the world, regardless of religion or ethnicity.

Despite fierce criticisms from various political groups both inside
and outside Turkey, the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government
has reiterated that it will not abandon this foreign policy based on
conscience, justice and moral principles. Although one can disagree and
argue that this policy is not sustainable for a country like Turkey,
which has ambitions to become a regional and global leader, it deserves
to be respected as it is based on humanistic values and ethics.

At this point, however, I believe, that the very citizens of this
country have the right to question why the government is not caring
for the justice of its own people, too.

Need an example? Just look into the trial process of Hrant Dink’s
murder. Dink was first killed by triggerman Ogun Samast on Jan. 19,
2007, but he has continued “being massacred” since then in every phase
of the judicial process Dink’s family expressed its disappointment
and reaction in a letter before yesterday’s hearing, more than
six-and-a-half year after the murder: “As the Dink family, we will
no more be tools of the state mechanisms that have been mocking us,
and we will not attend the hearings of the retrial.” The state and its
judiciary are yet to bring justice for the country’s Armenian-Turkish
journalist, once a symbolic figure in reconciliation efforts between
Turks and Armenians.

Dink’s case is cited here as it’s the most actual and newsworthy one;
otherwise, the absence of justice or the inability of the judicial
system to provide justice is a wider and more common problem in
Turkey. Apart from the structural problems of the Turkish justice
system, which long ago lost its independence and impartiality, its
reflex to protect “the state” at the expense of breaching the rights
of individuals, appear to be the roots of this problem of injustice.

It’s getting increasingly difficult to understand how this country will
bring justice to Syrians, to Palestinians, etc., when it fails to ease
the pains of the mothers of Ethem Sarısuluk, Ali İsmail Korkmaz,
or Ahmet Atakan. Or how this government will explain its inaction
against and tolerance toward security forces’ violating rules and
procedures? How can injustice turn into a norm in a country aspiring
to join the EU one day?

The problem that this government is reluctant to see is that this
inconsistency is perfectly observed by the world and is one of leading
sources of its loss of credibility.

September/18/2013

ARMENIAN HELD CAPTIVE IN AZERBAIJAN APPEALS TO BE SENT TO THIRD COUNTRY

APA, Azerbaijan
Sept 18 2013

[ 18 September 2013 19:15 ]

Baku. Shahriyar Alizadeh – APA. “The Armenian held captive in
Azerbaijan Akop Injigulyan has appealed to Azerbaijani government to
be sent to a third country”.

Secretary of the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and
Missing Persons Shahin Sayilov told APA that he does not know when
the captive will be handed over to the third country: “His documents
must be sent to Baku office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

Thereafter, it will be determined to which country the captive will
be handed over”.

On the night of August 7-8, serviceman of Armenian armed units Akop
Injugulyan crossed the part of the contact line controlled by the
Azerbaijani Army in the direction of Aghdam front.

AZERBAIJANI PRESIDENT: “THERE WILL BE TIME, WE WILL LIVE IN IREVAN, GOYCE AND ZENGEZUR

APA, Azerbaijan
Sept 18 2013

[ 19 September 2013 00:09 ]

Ilham Aliyev: “Azerbaijan has returned Ramil Safarov-its officer to
homeland, given him freedom and restored the justice.”

Baku-APA. Armenian fascism has to be estimated properly on a world
scale, in order to be insured from such tragedies in future.

Unfortunately, this injustice continues up to now. I remember, I
was condemned baselessly and so many foreign dishonest politicians
expressed accusations against me, because the Azerbaijani officer-
Ramil Safarov returned homeland and I gave him freedom. Even European
Parliament adopted resolution on this issue and condemned my actions.

But even today I can say firmly that Azerbaijan has returned its
officer to homeland, given him freedom and established justice. But,
look at the world press, international organizations, how many
groundless accusations they have made against Azerbaijan”

I am completely sure that Azerbaijan will restore its territorial
integrity. All the factors- comparison of powers, international and
economic-military factors indicate it. Just it takes time and we want
to achieve it soon. Azerbaijan’s state flag should be waved in Shusha,
Khankendi and Azerbaijanis should live in their historical lands in
future. Our historical lands are Irevan khanate, Goyce and Zangazur
regions. There will be times; we will live in these lands. I believe
it, I am sure. Everyone should put their efforts in order to achieve
it. Everyone should bring this sacred day nearer via their activities”,
said President Ilham Aliyev at the opening of the Genocide Memorial
Complex.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva,
on September 18 attended the opening of the Genocide Memorial Complex
built in the north-eastern town of Guba to honor victims of massacres
committed in the area by Armenian and Bolshevik forces in 1918.

The President was informed about construction work at the complex.

Guba mass burial site caused by the genocide committed by Armenians
against Azerbaijanis was discovered on April 1, 2007. The employees
of Archeology and Ethnography Institute of Azerbaijan National Academy
of Sciences found out the bones of more than 400 people. More than 50
of the remains belonged to children, 100 to women, the rest to the old
men. Along with Azerbaijanis, Lezgins, Jews, Tats and representatives
of other ethnic groups killed by Armenians were buried there.

Tens of thousands of Muslims as well as local Jews were killed
by joint Armenian and Bolshevik forces in Baku and the regions,
including Guba, Shamakhi, Goychay, Karabakh and Lankaran regions
between March and September 1918. Nearly 167 villages were destroyed
in Guba region alone.

The memorial complex was built near a mass grave of some of the
victims discovered in the town of Guba. The mass grave, unearthed
during construction of a stadium in 2007, contains remains of hundreds
of victims.

President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva planted trees
outside the memorial.

The Head of State, addressing the public, spoke about acts of genocide
committed against Azerbaijani people in the 20th century, historical
facts related to this tragic massacre and the successful development
of today’s Azerbaijan.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress

JAMIL HASANLI: THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN IS NOT EQUAL FOR ALL

Turan Information Agency
September 17, 2013 Tuesday

Baku/16.09.13/Turan : Contrary to the desire of the authorities
to remove the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF) from the
political arena, this structure, as a model unifying model opposition,
confirmed its viability said at the press conference the presidential
candidate of the NCDF Jamil Hasanli .

“The National Council was established as a model unifying the
opposition, and in its center is a prominent representative of
public opinion in Azerbaijan, Rustam Ibrahimbayov. The other day,
a delegation of the National Council visited the United Kingdom and
had meetings with representatives of the political establishment,
experts and human rights activists. Rustam Ibrahimbayov, for some
reason, could not come to London, but the day before we met him in
Tbilisi, and discussed election strategy.

Rustam Ibrahimbayov said that he will continue to lead the election
strategy,” said Hasanli.

According to him, Ibrahimbayov called a provocation reports by some
media that he wants to resign from his post of the head of the NCDF.

Referring to the election campaign which started on September 16,
Hasanli said there are unequal opportunities . “For us, today begins
the election campaign, and for Ilham

Aliyev, it started with the announcement of this date. Every day,
television stations dedicate him a few hours. This is motivated by
the fact that he is the current president.

But in fact he is a candidate for the presidency. To give the coverage
of the current activity of the head of state it is sufficient to show
news stories for 30-40 seconds, instead of showing him for hours.

We are not against the increase of salaries of the population , but
if it is done on the eve of the election, it means that one of the
contenders uses public resources in his favor,” said Hasanli.

Answering the question how Hasanli sees the future of Azerbaijan
in case if he wins elections, , he said that first of all it is a
country with a just society, the rights to a decent life , integrated
into the Euro-Atlantic space. Hasanli condemned the foreign policy
of the current government because of Azerbaijan’s accession to the
Non-Aligned Movement .

“The country, 20 % of territories of which are occupied, should
not be involved in the Non-Aligned Movement,” said Hasanli , noting
that Azerbaijan should have good neighborly relations and mutually
beneficial cooperation with neighboring countries.

Referring to the Karabakh conflict, he expressed the opinion that
this issue has become for the ruling elites of the two countries
a tool for maintaining power. For 20 years Aliyev’s regime has not
released even 20 meters of occupied lands, he said.

As for the electoral tactics , the co-chairman of the electoral
headquarters of Hasanli , head of the Supreme Majlis of PPFA,
Hasan Karimov said that the NCDF has no representatives in election
commissions. It was therefore decided to delegate one member of an
advisory capacity, as well as observers to all 5,000 polling precincts,
and 125 district election commissions.

He also called a serious violation of the electoral law the
distribution on first day of the school year, a book for students and
teachers “Baku: 2003-2013” which praises Ilham Aliyev. The publisher
of the book is the Ministry of Economic Development. Karimov believes
that the participation of the Ministry in the election campaign is
a serious violation of the law. This book could be published only at
the expense of the election Fund by Aliyev.

The other co-chairman of the electoral headquarters of Hasanli, deputy
chairman of “Musavat”, Gulaga Aslanly, told about unfavorable sites
designated for rallies. “In reality, these places have been allocated
by the Baku executive power, not by the CEC. We will officially ask
that the CEC establish places for the election agitation.-06D–

From: A. Papazian

AZERBAIJANI EMBASSY CONDEMNED THE TRIP OF MEMBER OF THE BUNDESTAG TO KARABAKH

Turan Information Agency
September 17, 2013 Tuesday

Baku/16.09.13/Turan : The journey of the German Bundestag deputy Jurgen
Klimke on September 12 to the occupied territories of Azerbaijan
is a provocation directed against the territorial integrity of
Azerbaijan. This is stated in the statement of the Azerbaijani embassy
in Germany.

The statement said that the embassy sent a protest letter to Jurgen
Klimke, demanding an explanation from him about this illegal trip. In
addition , the Embassy has asked the Bundestag faction CDU / CSU to
express their attitude to the matter.

“The position of the Government of Germany on the issue of the
Armenian- Azerbaijani conflict known. The German government does
not recognize the breakaway regime in the territory of Azerbaijan,
or any of its representatives, ” the statement said.

Recall that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan includes
in the list of undesirable persons those

who without the consent of Baku visit Nagorno -Karabakh and other
occupied territories .

At present, the list includes 315 names.