HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST: SOCIAL CONDITION OF CITIZENS IN AZERBAIJAN IS NOT GOOD, DESPITE OF OIL REVENUES
18:44 11/06/2014 >> SOCIETY
There are several reasons for the lack of the improvement in the
human rights situation in Azerbaijan. One of them is associated with
the high oil revenues, but in 2015 the production will decrease, the
head of the National Committee of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly
Arzu Abdullayeva said in an interview with the Objective TV, the
Azerbaijani news agency “Turan” reports.
According to her, in spite of the oil revenues, the social status of
the citizens in Azerbaijan is not good enough.
“It should not be like that in a country that is rich in resources.
The deterioration of the social condition of the population may become
an impetus for the activity of the people. However, the authorities
are trying to pre-empt these processes. That is why the number of
arrests and harassment of civil society activists is growing,” said
the human rights activist.
As for the issue of political prisoners, according to Arzu Abdullayeva,
it depends on the willingness of the Azerbaijani authorities who
demonstratively show that they can solve or ignore this problem.
International organizations have a very limited mechanism of pressure
on Baku, Abdullayeva says. To the question why Azerbaijan does not
fulfill the decision of the European Court, the human rights activist
briefly replied: “Because it does not want to.” In the same time,
she referred to informal information stating that Baku placates the
European Court with an aim to take decisions that suit only Azerbaijan.
Referring to multiple calls addressed to human rights activists and
journalists to attend the public prosecutor’s office when back from
trips to Armenia, Abdullayeva noted that she was also called. “It
is done to intimidate people, in order to leave people with one
choice only – to become a pro-governmental. However, the idea of
pro-governmental NGOs is nonsense,” Abdullayeva noted.
Source: Panorama.am
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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