Independent European Daily Express
Aug 10 2014
Azerbaijan: Human Rights Plummet to New Low
Sunday, August 10, 2014 – 21:29Inter Press Service
BAKU, Aug 10 (IPS) – Azerbaijan in recent months has launched a clear
assault against various civil society activists and non-governmental
organisations. While rough treatment of critics is nothing new in this
energy-rich South-Caucasus country, one question remains unanswered:
Why pick up the pace now?
Some observers link this behavior to two causes: The February
resignation of Ukraine EURO ™s ex-President Alexander Yanukovich in
response to mass protests, and the Azerbaijani government EURO ™s keen
desire for a protest-free 2015 European Games, a Summer Olympics for
European countries that is a pet-project of President Ilham Aliyev.
And so, in the best of Soviet traditions, the cleanup has begun.
[pullquote]3[/pullquote]The tactics appear to fall into two categories
EURO ” criminal prosecutions and scrutiny of financial resources. Since
June, several leaders of local NGOs, critical bloggers and opposition
activists have been arrested and sentenced to long prison terms on
various criminal charges, including alleged tax-evasion, hooliganism
and possession of illegal narcotics.
On Jul. 30, the crackdown accelerated with the filing of criminal
charges, including treason, against outspoken human-rights activist
Leyla Yunus. She is now in jail for three months awaiting trial. A
former defense-ministry spokesperson actively engaged in
citizen-diplomacy with neighbouring foe Armenia, Yunus and her
husband, conflict-analyst Arif Yunus, have been under investigation
since April.
Shortly before her detention, Yunus and a group of fellow activists
publicly denounced the upcoming European Games as inappropriate for
EURO oeauthoritarian Azerbaijan, where human rights are violated. EURO A
group led by Yunus has appealed to the European Olympic Committee
(EOC) and the European Union EURO ™s EOC representative office to cancel
the decision to hold the Games in Baku.
Yunus EURO ™ problems with the government, though, are not unique. The
list of people sentenced to prison since June reads like a EURO oeWho EURO ™s
Who EURO of Azerbaijani civil society.
Anar Mammadli, director of the Election Monitoring Center has been
sentenced to 5.5 years on charges of tax evasion; his deputy, Bashir
Suleymanly got five years. Hasan Huseynli, head of the
youth-education NGO Kamil Vetendash, or Intellectual Citizen, received
six years for allegedly illegally carrying weapons and wounding a
person with a knife.
Yadigar Sadigov an activist from the opposition Musavat Party is in
for six years on charges of EURO oehooliganism. EURO And three so-called
EURO oeFacebook activists, EURO bloggers Elsever Mursalli, Abdulla Abilov
and Omar Mammadov were sentenced to upwards of five years for
carrying illegal drugs.
On Jul. 25, Baku police put another Musavat activist, Faradj Karimli,
into pre-trial detention for allegedly EURO oeadvertising psychotropic
substances. EURO All of the accused deny the charges.
The prosecutions follow on the heels of legislative changes that now
allow law-enforcement and tax agencies greater scope to audit and fine
registered NGOs and ban outright unregistered NGOs EURO ™ ability to
receive grants.
EURO oeObviously, Baku is following the Russian way EURO ” to control the
financial flows and, thus, to control the situation, EURO commented
political analyst Elhan Shahinoglu, head of Baku EURO ™s Atlas Research
Center.
EURO oeIf the pressure will continue further, it will not be possible to
talk about the normal activity of NGO EURO ™s in the country, EURO warned
Elchin Abdullayev, a member of a network of NGO EURO ™s created to resist
perceived intimidation-tactics.
The fact that these events are taking place during Azerbaijan EURO ™s
six-month chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of
Europe, the continent EURO ™s primary human-rights organ, seems to pose no
contradiction for the government.
And the desire for control apparently extends to international groups
as well. The Baku office of the Washington, DC-based National
Democratic Institute was officially closed on Jul. 2 after the
authorities accused it of financing EURO oeradical EURO opposition youth
groups.
Like others, Emil Huseynov, director of the Institute for Reporters EURO ™
Freedom and Safety, which also faces funding problems, traces that
accusation to Baku EURO ™s fear of an Azerbaijani EuroMaidan.
“Two months ago, the deputy head of the presidential administration,
Novruz Mammadov, openly accused the U.S. of financing a revolution in
Ukraine. Therefore, the authorities want to deprive the local civil
society of any foreign funding […], EURO Huseynov charged.
Gulnara Akhundova, a representative of the Danish-run International
Media Support NGO, said that the government has refused to register
any of the organisation EURO ™s grants to local NGO EURO ™s and individuals.
EURO oeMost of our partners in Azerbaijan cannot work. The bank accounts
of some of them are frozen, EURO Akhundova said. No reasons have been
given.
According to the pro-opposition Turan news agency, the government also
reportedly has expressed a desire to halt activities by the U.S.
Peace Corps, which has operated in Azerbaijan since 2003.
President Aliyev, however, insists that Azerbaijan has no problem with
civil rights. Last month, speaking at the Jun. 28 opening of the
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
Parliamentary Assembly EURO ™s session in Baku, President Aliyev repeated
that Azerbaijan is EURO oea democratic country where freedoms of assembly,
speech, media and Internet are guaranteed. EURO
Roughly a week later, speaking to Azerbaijani foreign-ministry
officials, he claimed that he had never EURO oeheard any criticism of
Azerbaijan EURO ™s domestic policy at meetings with European leaders. EURO
If so, it is not for lack of talking.
The OSCE has termed the number of journalists in prison in Azerbaijan
EURO oea dangerous trend, EURO while the European Union on Jul. 17 urged
Baku to meet its obligations as EURO oea Member of the Council of
Europe. EURO
A difference in perspective poses an ongoing obstacle, however, noted
U.S. Ambassador to Baku Richard Morningstar on Jul. 25, Turan
reported.
EURO oeThe major task of Azerbaijan is to keep stability. But we believe
that if people would get more freedom, there will be more stability in
Azerbaijan, EURO Morningstar said.
While Shahinoglu believes that the U.S. and European Union, for all
their energy and security interests, will have to continue pressing
Baku about its EURO oepoor human-rights record, EURO President Aliyev
already has cautioned that the complaints will fall on deaf ears.
EURO oeSome people who called themselves opposition or human rights
defenders believe that somebody would tell us something and we will
obey, EURO he commented on Jul. 8. EURO oeThey are naïve people. EURO
Editor’s note: This article originally appeared on EurasiaNet.org.
Shahin Abbasov is a freelance correspondent based in Baku.
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