Global Voices » Azerbaijani

Video Highlights: Identity, Refugees, Conflict and Open Technology

Juliana Rincón Parra — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 03:33:09 +0000

This section aims to showcase interesting and recent posts in Global Voices that show the many ways in which videos are helping people tell stories all around the world. You can follow the activity by regions in our YouTube channel or by clicking on the regional header links.

East Asia

For our Special Coverage page on Languages and the Internet comes an article about the different languages of East Timor. This next short film shows us the importance of receiving education in the mother tongue and the innovative Education Policy for Multilingual Education that East Timor is adopting.

Sub-Saharan Africa

In the post ‘Mali, Niger: Tuareg Voices Barely Heard Over the Sounds of War ‘, a video amplifies the voices of the Tuareg:

In Kidal, a town in north-eastern Mali, an unofficial number of Tuareg people marched to claim the autonomy of the Azawad region on November 1.

In ‘Kenya: Life in Dadaab, the World's Largest Refugee Camp‘ we look through the eyes of different aid organizations the complexities of life in Dadaab, a refugee camp receiving more than 1,400 people every day:

Central Asia and Caucasus

In Armenia and Azerbaijan, video is being used to improve understanding of the complex issues dividing the people of both nations. We linked to this insightful blog post on the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict as seen through YouTube videos. It included this next video, which shows an interesting experiment on both sides of the border. In the video, a taxi with a camera records passengers reactions to the taxi driver's musical selection: he plays Azeri music in Armenia and Armenian music in Azerbaijan. The passenger's comments have been captioned in English.

You can visit our Special Coverage page on Caucasus Conflict Voices to learn more about the region's situation. To read more about the role of video in the conflict, visit ‘Armenia-Azerbaijan Dialogue Through Film‘ and its second part, ‘More Armenia-Azerbaijan Dialogue Through Film‘ will provide extra information.

Latin America

Global Voices Author and Lingua Editor in Spanish Juan Arellano has been interviewing different Latin American experts. In this one he spoke with Santiago Hoerth of the Codigo Sur project about open technology and Open Software:

In another interview, he spoke with attorney and Creative Commons regional representative Carolina Botero and asked her to give her opinion on piracy.

Azerbaijan: Facebook hate campaign for ‘consorting' with the ‘enemy?'

Pervin Muradli — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 07:34:17 +0000

Angered by a photograph of Aynishan Guliyeva, a contestant in this year's national selection for Eurovision, standing next to an Armenian competitor during a recent regional music festival, some youth in Azerbaijan have launched a hate campaign against the singer on the popular social networking site. Created on Monday, the page has 2,726 likes at time of writing with the campaign reportedly resulting in the singer deleting her Armenian counterpart as a contact from her personal Facebook page.

Azerbaijan: Eurovision in a non-free country?

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 21:44:30 +0000

A campaign to raise awareness of the plight of political prisoners and restrictions on freedom of assembly in Azerbaijan has been launched by four non-governmental organizations ahead of next year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in the country's capital, Baku. A video in English detailing the campaign has been posted on Obyektiv TV and a Facebook page set up here.

Azerbaijan: Fascinated by Georgia

Pervin Muradli — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 09:58:37 +0000

Şüarımız GƏLƏCƏK! [AZ] travels to Georgia and becomes charmed by the beauty and “scent of democracy” the country offers in the region. The blogger notes that while his home country of Azerbaijan is considered to be the fastest growing economy in the South Caucasus it still lags behind from Georgia in terms of tourism.

Azerbaijan: Jailed activist's mother detained

Pervin Muradli — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 16:48:51 +0000

whatwaswritten translates a RFE/RL Azeri Service report saying that mother of Bakhtiyar Hajiyev, an imprisoned youth activist responsible for a Facebook page calling for pro-democracy protests in Azerbaijan, was detained earlier today after placing her ruling party membership card on the grave of late president Heydar Aliyev in protest. The blog reports that she was released after half an hour.

Azerbaijan: Twitter as a tool for activism

Onnik Krikorian — Sun, 29 May 2011 10:17:12 +0000

Global Voices co-founder Ethan Zuckerman comments on the use of Twitter in last week's campaign by Amnesty International to call for the release of prisoner of conscience Eynulla Fatullayev. Although the imprisoned journalist was released, argues Zuckerman, several questions have been raised by the online action and not least in terms of attempts by pro-government supporters to drown it out. Global Voices' Caucasus Editor responds to the post in a separate entry on the Peace and Collaborative Development Network.

Azerbaijan: Eynulla Fatullayev Pardoned Following Twitter Action

Onnik Krikorian — Thu, 26 May 2011 17:09:25 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Just two days after the UK branch of Amnesty International launched its Twitter campaign to call for the release of Eynulla Fatullayev comes news that the imprisoned journalist and prisoner of conscience has been included in a list of prisoners to be pardoned ahead of the 93rd anniversary of the founding of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic.

Sentenced in 2007, with previous calls for his release from the European Court of Human Rights as well as many other international human rights and media watchdogs falling on deaf ears, the news surprised many, but was nonetheless cautiously spread on Twitter.

@leylanajafli: #Eynulla Fatullayev FREED?? has anyone confirmed? #Azerbaijan

JafarAbdullayev: Deyilənə görə #Eynulla Fətullayev azad edilib.Təki yalan olmasın.

They say #Eynulla Fatullayev is free. Hope it is not a lie.

@leylanajafli: Gulara Azimzadeh also says she got the news by phone “from smb who wouldn't joke about it”… Will confirm once there's smth solid. #Eynulla

@leylanajafli: List of prisoners to be officially pardoned will be on @RadioAzadliq soon - #Eynulla Fatullayev's name expected to be there!

When the news had been officially confirmed Twitter exploded with tweets from pro-democracy activists in Azerbaijan and elsewhere.

@turkhankarim: EYNULLA IS FREE!

@HuseynovaTurkan: #Eynulla Fatullayev is Free!!! #humanrights #Azernaijan

@mejidli: #EYNULLA FETULLAYEV AZADLIQDA! #azerbaijan #azerbaycan

#EYNULLA FATULLAYEV IS FREE! #azerbaijan #azerbaycan

@Peaceweet: Detained #Azerbaijani journalist Eynulla Fatullayev has been freed! Thank you so much everyone, especially @AmnestyOnline This is amazing!

@leylanajafli: Confirmed! #Eynulla Fatullayev has been pardoned ahead of #28may holiday :) @jonsnowC4 @AmnestyUK http://bit.ly/l62UIM

@GozelBayramli: Eynulla fətullayev azadlıqda. Bütün siyası məhbusların tezliklə azad olunmasını tələb edirik…

Eynulla Fatullayev is free. We demand the release of all political prisoners…

@IsaGambar: #Eynulla azadlıqda! Danışdım, formadadı! Davamı gəlsin!

#Eynulla is free. talked to him. he is in good shape. let it flow

@FuserLimon: Reportedly, #Eynulla Fatullayev is already home, drinking tea. We have yet to see photos.

@mirafgan: Daha bir siyasi məhbus AZADLIQDA! Eurovision yaxınlaşdıqca ümid edirəm Azərbaycanda heç siyasi məhbus qalmayacaq! #azerbaijan #eynulla

yet another political prisoner is FREE. i hope there will be no political prisoner in Azerbaijan as eurovision approaches. #azerbaijan #eynulla

The issue of whether bad press following this year's Eurovision Song Contest victory might have had a role in the pardon was also mentioned by others.

@lukeallnutt: #Eynulla Fatullayev pardon: So was it #Amnesty or #Eurovision?

The answer to that question remains unknown, but it is possible that a combination of media attention on Azerbaijan ahead of Eurovision as well as increased campaigning by organizations such as Amnesty International played a significant role.

@AmnestyUK: Our twitter action this week was the culmination of years of work by so many organisations. And all of you. Thank you. #Eynulla #Azerbaijan

@lukeallnutt: kudos to @AmnestyUK MT @Golnaz Esfandiari I just interviewed #Eynulla who said Amnesty International played a key role in his release

@jonsnowC4: Utterlly amazing news: Azabaijan has freed the editor Eynulla after Amnesty's massTweet.thanks for everyone's help: the power of Twitter!!

@adewolff: In repressive #Azerbaijan, long-time jailed journalist #Eynulla was freed. Thanks to int'l pressure and #Eurovision. Let's remain watchful.

@emajidli: More good news! Seeing reports that #Eynulla Fatullayev is free! Eurovision can transform #Azerbaijan !

@emajidli: The “Eurovision affect” in Azerbaijan: Most famous political prisoner Eynulla Fatullayev set free after 4 years in jail on politically motivated charges!! Deep sigh for the country!! Wish the other activists staying behind teh bars on politac charges be freed soon!!

@leylanajafli: #Eynulla Fatullayev at home! Reminds me of the feeling I had after Adnan and Emin were freed. #Azerbaijan

However, with pro-government activists from the İRƏLİ Public Union attempting to disrupt the Amnesty campaign to release Fatullayev, many remain concerned that the arrests of outspoken critics might still continue.

@adewolff: And thus, the #Ireli chief concludes this day of disappointment for his band of collaborators. RT @raufmardiyev: We'll be back :)

@parvanapersiani: @adewolff @raufmardiyev with new arrests? oh, we never doubt it :)

For Eynulla Fatullayev, however, it probably doesn't matter… for now at least.

@turkhankarim: Eynulla bütün onu dəstəkləyənlərə çox sağol deyir: “Hamınızı sevirəm…”

Eynulla says many thanks to those who supported him: “I love you all…”

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Azerbaijani translations courtesy of Pervin Muradli.

Azerbaijan: Eurovision winner Nigar Camal's visa criticism

Pervin Muradli — Sun, 22 May 2011 13:21:05 +0000

Dissident blogger and journalist Elnur Majidli, now living in France and facing arrest in Azerbaijan for his Facebook activity, has uploaded a screenshot of a status line apparently written last year by Nigar Camal, one of the two singers who won this year's Eurovision Song Contest in Germany, on the popular social networking site. With concerns already being raised about the less than simple visa application process for the oil-rich former Soviet republic ahead of next year's competition, Camal, now a British citizen, appears to says she was refused an extension for her own visa and commented “what an idiotic country with idiotic laws.”

Azerbaijan: Bloggers Divided Over Eurovision Win

Pervin Muradli — Sun, 22 May 2011 12:08:26 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Last weekend, Azerbaijan was shaking, with thousands of people flooding onto the streets of Baku, the capital, in the early hours of the morning.

No, it wasn't an earthquake or even a popular uprising. It was instead spontaneous celebrations that broke out following the country's win in the Eurovision Song Contest held in Düsseldorf, Germany just hours earlier.

Nevertheless, while most Azerbaijanis were euphoric following the Eurovision success, some bloggers were more critical, considering that the euphoria surrounding the win, which now means next year's competition will be held in Baku, was futile and meaningless.

One of them was UK-based Scary Azeri who asked some of the questions the international media is now starting to raise too:

[…] with all those people who watch the contest, and the attention drawing to Azerbaijan as the possible host for 2012, would at least some things change for the best? Would there be some benefit to the people? Also, as some friends wondered, would Armenians participate? Would they be welcome to? Would Azerbaijan handle the fact that Eurovision is extremely gay, and will involve a huge gay crowd coming to Baku? Would it show its hospitality to all of the above? How will it actually work, if it does at all?

Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines, another blog based outside the country, also wondered about the significance of the victory and how it might benefit the country. Following a particularly critical post, the blogger clarified and expanded more on the subject in a second entry:

[…] let me explain. Azerbaijan won the Eurovision song contest- it has invested a lot, […] and the fact that it won, shows how much effort was put into this. My point was that if Azerbaijan and those responsible for the contest manage to get Azerbaijan come first in some of the (though I still think the most unimportant) most popular competitions held every year- the Eurovision- why cannot it do the same thing regarding everything else that is wrong in this country- freedom of expression, freedom and security of journalists, overall security of its people, respect of human rights, equal rights, “0″ corruption, better salaries, better liberties and much more…

Elə-belə [az] also agreed, albeit in a more nationalistic tone, specifically referring to the still unresolved conflict with Armenia over Nagorny Karabakh.

İnsanı üzən isə bu uğuru İqdidarın uğuru kimi qələmə verənlərin çox olmasıdı.Əzizlərim bu nə müxalif insanların məğlubiyyəti, nədə ki İqdidarın qələbəsi deyil.Bu seçkilər deyil, Qarabağı qaytarmamışıq. […]

[…]

Hər kəsi də təbrik edirəm..2012 çox maraqlı il olacaq,Ermənilərsiz Dünyada yaşasaq bəlkə də biz hər zaman qalib ola bilərdik… […] Və ümid edirəm Ermənilər bura gəlməkdən imtina edərlər,çünki Onlar Bakıda qalib olsalar o zaman AZADLIQ meydanında nələr olacaq onun xəyalı belə pisdi.. […]

What is disappointing is that there is a majority who pass this victory off as the success of the Government. My dears, this is not a defeat of the opposition, neither is it the victory of the Government. This is not elections. We have not returned Karabakh. […]

[…]

I congratulate all.. 2012 will be very interesting. Probably if we lived in a world without Armenians, we could always be winners… […] And I hope Armenians will refuse to come here, because if They win in Baku, then the idea of what might happen on the FREEDOM square is horrible. […]

Another blogger, Baxram [az], also commented on the mass celebrations and what it believed to be the irrationality displayed by some who attributed the victory to the successful foreign policy of the government (An English version in full is available here):

Dünən gecə və bu gün küçəyə çıxan insaların tv-lərə verdiyi müsahibələrə qulaq asdıqca bir daha əmin oldum ki, bu insanları nə qədər minsən, söysən, təhqir etsən bir o qədər yaxşıdı. Kimisi deyir gün o gün olsun gələn il yevrovizyona Şuşada çayçıda baxaq, kimisi deyir bu qələbə ilə Qarabağın azadlığı yolunda ilk addımı atdıq…Kimi də bunu ucunu Heydər Əliyevin qoyduğu, İlham Əliyevin də dibinə qədər itələdiyi uğurlu daxili və xarici siyasətin bəhrəsi olduğunu qeyd etdi…Sonuncuya qatılıram. […]

Nəhayət, kralımız Avropanı da almağı bacardı…

Ən pisi isə odur ki, demokratiya diktaturaya, padşahlığa məğlub oldu…

Seeing interviews with people who took to the streets to celebrate these last couple of days confirmed that, the more you belittle them, the more you insult them, the better it is. There are some who say “May we watch Eurovision in Shusha next year”, those who say “this is another step towards the liberation of Karabakh”… And there are those who say that this is a result of Heydar and Ilham Aliyev's successful domestic and foreign policy. I agree with the latter.

Finally, our king managed to conquer Europe, too.

The saddest thing is that democracy was beaten by dictatorship… By monarchy…

As pro-government supporters used Twitter and Facebook to spread links to articles and videos showing how developed the Azerbaijani capital had become (in response to some Europeans voicing concerns about Baku lacking the necessary infrastructure to host Eurovision), bloggers such as XezerXeber [az] rejoiced in the win:

Biz bacardıq – öz mədəniyyətimizlə bir Avropa dövləti olduğumuzu, Avropa dəyərlərini bölüşdüyümüzü, Avropa geomədəni çevrəsində yaşadığımızı sübut etdik. […]

2009-cu ildə Azərbaycan İslam ölkələrinin mədəniyyət paytaxtı idi.

2011-ci ildə Azərbaycan Avropanın mədəni paytaxtına çevrildi. […]

We made it - with our culture we proved that we are a European country, we share European values, we live in the European geo-cultural environment. […]

In 2009 Azerbaijan Azerbaijan was a cultural capital of Islamic countries.

In 2011 Azerbaijan has become a European cultural capital. […]

Dissenting voices such as In Mutatione Fortitudo still remained, however. Elaborating on some of the many challenges the country now faces as it prepares to host the competition in 2012, it did not sound too optimistic:

[…] we clearly understand what results this victory can bare - encountering serious legitimacy concerns at home, the Azerbaijani government will use this opportunity to full extent to mobilize popular support for their authoritarian policies. […]

It will become a favorite propaganda toy in the hands of the government. Tightly controlled media has already started to sing dithyrambs in honor of the President, et all (”architects of the victory”) and the victory itself is soon going to be the result of successful foreign and domestic policies of the government.

Serious human rights and democracy concerns will be pushed aside.

Baku will host Eurovision 2012 and as a typical shame-based society, critics will be silenced – with a silent approval from general conformist public - not to spoil the show.

[…]

We don't see any wish and will of the government in Baku to soften the regime yet.

But others such as Pərviz Şükürzadənin bloqu [az] held a different opinion:

Ermənistanda isə qeyri-rəsmi matəmdir. Bu onların saytlarından da hiss olunur. […]

[…] Nə qədər təəcüblü olsa da, Azərbaycanlılar arasında da bu qələbəyə sevinməyənlər, müsabiqəyə ləkə yaxanlar da tapıldı. Hərənin bir dərdi var, amma bildiyim qədəri onların bir çoxu bu qələbənin iqtidara işləyəcəyindən ehtiyatlanaraq bu addımı atırlar. […]

In Armenia there is unofficial mourning. You can tell it from their web sites as well. […]

[…] However surprising it might be, there are a few Azerbaijanis who are not happy about the victory and smeared the contest. Everyone has their own issue, but as far as I know most of them do it fearing that the victory will work for the government. […]

However, not all critics of the government considered the victory in such a context, with recently released video blogging youth activist Adnan Hajizada tweeting his hopes for the competition:

@FuserLimon: #Eurovision will change #Azerbaijan, the same way as #Olympics changed #China! I believe in that!

Despite the divided opinion, or perhaps even because of it, the issues surrounding holding Eurovision 2012 in Azerbaijan are likely to become the center of much discussion in the year ahead.

Image source: www.eurovision.tv

This post is part of our special coverage Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Azerbaijan: Manatvision

Onnik Krikorian — Fri, 20 May 2011 11:37:05 +0000

Global Voices author Leyla Najafli posts an English translation of a blog post commenting on Azerbaijan's victory in last weekend's Eurovision Song Contest. Playing with the name of the local currency and Eurovision, the blogger disagrees with the general euphoria otherwise displayed by many of the blogger's fellow countrymen.

Azerbaijan: Eurovision-induced sexual revolution?

Pervin Muradli — Wed, 18 May 2011 16:31:29 +0000

Turkhan's blog [AZ] posts video and photos of a woman celebrating Azerbaijan's Eurovision victory in a less than expected way considering the otherwise traditional and patriarchal nature of local society. Stripping to her waist in the center of the capital, Baku, the blog wonders about the likelihood of a sexual revolution in Azerbaijan given that the images and video were shared widely on Facebook.

Azerbaijan: Eurovision Victory

Onnik Krikorian — Sun, 15 May 2011 21:07:32 +0000

This post is part of our special coverage Caucasus Conflict Voices and Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Surprising many, Azerbaijan won last night's Eurovision Song Contest in Dusseldorf, Germany. Although expected to do well in the annual international music competition, Eldar Gasimov and Nigar Camal, performing under the stage name of Eli and Nikki, clinched the coveted award in front of a 36,000-strong audience and millions of viewers watching the show live on television.

Naturally, Facebook and Twitter carried the news, including tweets from the act themselves:

@ELDARQASIMOV: WE ARE THE FIRST THANK YOU ALL WE LOVE YOU FROM #AZERBAIJAN ! #EUROVISION

@NiGARCAMAL: THANK YOU WE ARE THE FIRST I LOVE YOU ALL ! #TURKEY #AZERBAIJAN #EUROVISION

Some viewers, however, were confused exactly where Azerbaijan was:

@oliviaaNJ: Still trying to figure out where Azerbaijan is… *looks at world map* FOUND IT… oh….

@Eeefaa182: Azerbaijan is reall… :O i found ithttp://twitpic.com/4y4ue8

Clapham Omnibus also noted the difficulty that many had in locating Azerbaijan on the map, but pointed out that its oil wealth might make it one of the few countries able to afford to host Eurovision next year:

So, most of Europe reached for their atlases last night - where exactly is Azerbaijan again? That’s right, next year Europe will extend to within 1000 miles of China, and only a hop away from Iran!

[…]

Apart from worries over the state of hotels and gay rights in Azerbaijan, the European television companies will no doubt sigh with relief - Azerbaijan is one of the few countries rich enough to stage the competition in the current economic climate, and they are absolutely desperate to do so. Should be mega - expect something to rival Moscow in 2008.

Nevertheless, with concerns from international human rights watchdogs about the internal situation in the country, some Azerbaijani activists were not convinced. Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines, for example, was not so enthused:

[…] Yep, here we are, for yet another Eurovision song contest. And as Azerbaijan celebrates its this year victory with a song called “Running Scared” by Nikki and Ell, one of Azerbaijan's young activists, Elnur Majidli declared wanted by Interpol. You know why? Well, simply because Azerbaijan chooses to spend thousands (if not millions) of government money on things like Eurovision while paying no attention whatsoever to the internal situation on the ground where for the record, journalists and activists get arrested on faked up charges.

So yea people, continue celebrating something as unnecessary and stupid as a Eurovision song contest, while turning a blind eye on human rights, freedom of expression and all the other violations taking place in your country. Because who cares about that right when Azerbaijan won such an important event of the year?!

Others agreed, but some saw Azerbaijan's victory as an excellent opportunity to implement much needed reform in the former Soviet republic:

@amnestymanc: congrats to #Azerbaijan for #Eurovisionwin! Now pls free elections & media, no political prisoners & no torturehttp://tinyurl.com/5tggdmy

@scaryazeri: Great! Now that everyone is excited about #Eurovision, we can all forget about human rights and other issues in #azerbaijan!

@GoldenTent: #Democracy advocates of #Azerbaijan - 12 months of #Eurovision coverage can work to your advantage - start your engines! ;) #Caucasus #esc

Because of the still unresolved conflict over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, some Armenians were also upset by the win:

@RMA_fan: @shahad6 stupid azerbaijan won Eurovision =(

Such reaction is not new to Eurovision with Armenians and Azerbaijanis often engaging in petty squabbling and sometimes even worse. In 2009, for example, Azerbaijan obscured the telephone number for viewers to vote for Armenia and its National Security Service called in at least one Azerbaijani for questioning after he managed to do so anyway.

Meanwhile, Armenia displayed the photograph of an Armenian monument in Nagorno Karabakh in a deliberate attempt to provoke Azerbaijan. Indeed, with Armenia hosting the Junior Eurovision contest later this year, and Azerbaijan already stating that it will not participate, the conflict between the two countries did not go unnoticed by the oikotimes:

I have the feeling that a lot of things happened last night in the Eurovision 2011 scoreboard. My thoughts since last night are storming my head and I have to share them with you as I am totally surprised (personally) that Caucasus countries (Armenia and Azerbaijan) are the winners and hosts of the two EBU family events (junior and senior Eurovision Song Contest).

[…]

It wouldn’t also be Baku 2012 if EBU had taken actions in 2009 when Azeri arrested 6 citizens with the accusation that they have voted for their eternal enemy, Armenians. This was never punished but just a small fine. The relations of the two countries are still in the red alert and security issues will definitely emerge next year. Do not forget that those two nations in the 80s were strongly killing each other over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Will Armenia participate next year? If yes, will Azerbaijan allow them in the country? You know that you cannot visit Baku if your passport has a visa from a previous visit to Armenia!

Naturally, key questions about Armenia's participation in the competition if it is to be held in Azerbaijan next year will likely surface although Emmy, this year's entry for Armenia, said that she would perform in Azerbaijan after Eli and Nikki said they would sing in Armenia.

- Если бы «Евровидение» проходило в Ереване, вы бы поехали туда?

-Мы всегда ждем приглашений от всех стран. Музыка, искусство — это не вопрос национальности.　 Мы будем рады участвовать в концертах везде.

Q: If the contest is held in Yerevan would you go there?

A: We are always waiting for invitations from all countries. Music, art - it's not a question of nationality. We will be happy to participate in concerts everywhere…

Unzipped: Gay Armenia, perhaps the main blog for Eurovision news from the Caucasus, commented on the situation:

I hope Armenia will go to Baku in 2012.

We should stop - and this is a good occasion to start with - once and for all this complex of losers or complex of inferiority between our countries, whenever either Azerbaijan or Armenia wins any international contest.

All talks of Armenia boycotting Eurovision in Baku I consider ridiculous and loser’s talk. Let’s pass that psychological complex, and rather concentrate on the quality of performance and the act chosen.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan must ensure that Armenian delegation and fans not only from Armenia but worldwide are able to attend the contest without having any problems with their yan/ian surname.

Ianyan also sounds a cautious note of optimism:

The duo are celebrating their win in Düsseldorf, and no doubt will be hailed when they return to Azerbaijan in the coming days, but for Armenia, who was sent home with Emmy’s “Boom Boom” during the first semi-final, the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest presents a conundrum if there ever was one.

The neighboring countries have no formal relations since 1994, due to the longest-running conflict in the former Soviet Union, the Nagorno-Karabakh war. The seven year entanglement saw an estimated 25,000 killed soldiers and civilians and one million people displaced, according to Human Rights Watch.

[…]

Perhaps the the presence of the best of the worst (and sometimes worst of the worst) pop music Europe has to offer might start a thaw in relations and hasten diplomacy and dialogue between the two countries. After all, “music has no borders” answered Eldar and Nigar during the press conference.

Others such as Jake Jones, a former democracy worker in Azerbaijan and his Azerbaijani wife, accomplished jazz singer Ulviyya Rahimova, demonstrated that unity was possible via social media alongside other Azerbaijani tweeps:

@Peaceweet: Hopefully next year #Armenians coming to #Azerbaijan will be big step towards peace in Caucasus. I'm so done with fighting! #Eurovision2012

@JonesJakeThe: #Eurovision fans from #Azerbaijan #Armenia and #Georgia celebrate and watch togetherhttp://twitpic.com/4xmqvg

Away from the politics, however, Facebook was awash with Azerbaijanis posting video of celebrations in Baku, the country's capital, in the early hours of this morning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5uC1yIyirg&feature=player_embedded

This post is part of our special coverage Caucasus Conflict Voices and Eurovision Azerbaijan 2012.

Thumbnail and featured image of Azeri Eurovision winners Eldar Gasimov and Nigar Camal by Alain Douit (EBU).

Azerbaijan: The ‘Terror' of Tiny Town

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 18 Apr 2011 21:10:59 +0000

Tamada Tales comments on the detention of a small child and her mother at an opposition protest in Baku on Sunday. Captured on video uploaded to YouTube and shared online, the blog wonders what ‘havoc' could possible be wreaked upon the Azerbaijani capital by the girl.

Azerbaijan: Chaos as Riot Police Intervene in 2 April Protest

Leyla Najafli — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 18:58:44 +0000

Continuing the wave of pro-democracy protests in Baku, the last being held on 12 March, the opposition's latest “unsanctioned” rally took place yesterday. However, the day was to start with Elnur Majidli, one of the moderators of the 11 March Great People's Day Facebook protest tweeting that a criminal case had been opened against him. The charge is “attempting to overthrow the government.”

As with the previous protests, Twitter was the most popular source of information for those interested with participants and supporters using the #2aprel hashtag to quickly spread information regarding any arrests or the direction the protest was going, especially as Fountain Square, where the protest was supposed to start at 2pm, was under police control from early on.

Fountain Square surrounded by police,2 people sitting in the park (no protesters) has been arrested. #azerbaijan#azerbaycan #2aprel #april2

Fevvareler meydanina boyuk bir polis kutlesi tokubler #2aprel#azerbaijan #baku

There is a mass of policemen concentrated at Fountain Square

Arrests started before the protest did, as reports about activists getting detained in their homes or on their way to the protest from tweeps such as @muntezir flooded in.

#12Mart aksiyasında 8 sutka həbs cəzası alan Müsavat Partiyasının üzvü Niyaz Nəsirov saxlanıb. #2aprel #azerbaycan#april2

Niyaz Nasirov, Musavat party member who was imprisoned for 8 days after 12 March protest, has been detained.

Vüqar Qurdqanlı sərbəst buraxıldı. Ölkəm qəzetinin müxbiri İlham və AXCP fəali Dəyanət Babayev isə hələ də bölmədədirlər #2aprel #azerbaycan

Vugar Gurdganli, Dayanat Babayev and another activist have been detained in their homes in Khirdalan.

18 nəfər Sumqayıtdan Bakıya mitinqə aparan mikroavtobus saxlanıb. Sərnişinlərlə birgə Sumqayıt Polis İdarəsi 4-cü bölməyə aparılıb. #2aprel

A micro-bus taking 18 passengers from Sumgayit to the Baku protest has been stopped. It has been taken to Sumgayit 4th Police Department along with passengers.

Simultaneously, pro-government activists carried out some ‘counter-protests' of their own.

50-60 nəfər hakimiyyətyönlü gənc Əli Kərimli evi önündə aksiya keçirib. Polis sonradan əraziyə gəlib,aksiya müdaxilə olmadan dağılıb #2aprel

50-60 pro-government youths held a protest outside Ali Karimli's house. The police came later on, the protest ended without any intervention.

The official site of Azadliq newspaper is hacked. #2aprel#Azerbaijan

http://azadliq.az turned into govt propaganda with photoshop images depicting opposition activists as homosexuals etc. *slow clap* #2aprel

Members of what many consider to be the ruling party's youth wing, the Ireli Public Union, also started using the #2aprel hashtag to counter anti-government statements as they had during previous protests. Suddenly there were more pro-government tweets than tweets about the protest.

В Азербайджане будут списаны долги населения за воду http://bit.ly/fkzWjk#2aprel #azerbaijan #protest

Population's water bill debts will be canceled in Azerbaijan

Given the content unrelated to the protests being held, some considered the pro-government tweets to amount to little more than spam and suggested blocking them. At the protest itself, however, as the riot police got involved things became more heated. Reports came in of tear gas being used, but photos and videos later showed that it was in fact mace.

There were also reports of unknown individuals breaking windows in nearby shops.

government started to use provocators #2aprel #2april #Azerbaijan some group who is not familiar started breaking window of shops

mulki geyimli polsiler texribat toredir, tikintilerin pencerelerinin susesini sindirir. #2aprel

Plainclothes officers are being saboteurs, breaking glass in buildings

Aksiya istirakcilarini polis avtobusa basib.Sonra gozyasardici qazi atib iceri. sonra girib yeniden avtobusa baslayib doymeye! #2Aprel

Police rounded up protesters into a bus. Then they threw tear gas in. Then got into the bus and started beating them again!

In fact some felt, were it not for the police the protest would have just been “more of the same” from the opposition.

Gözlənildiyi kimi, müxalifət tərəfdən ciddi heç nə yoxdur. Amma “vintovkalı” polisləri nəzər alsaq, hakimiyyət ciddi təlaşda =) #2Aprel

As expected, nothing serious coming from the opposition. But if we take into consideration the uptight policemen, the government is seriously worried.

With pro-government activists believing that the police had done a good job, and that reports of injuries were simply opposition propaganda, Rauf Mardiyev of the Ireli Public Union posted the same line in a blog post.

Peşəkarların dili ilə desək polis “təmiz” işlədi. Operativ və səliqəli. Bir nəfərin də olsun burnu qanamadı.

Düzdür, müxalitət propaqandası nəticəsində ayağı “sınan” […] yüzlərlə insan olacaq, bəlkə də Xədicə artıq həmin siyahını qafiyəli formada səsləndirir ya da hansısa local “Al-Kaeda” öz veb səhifəsində yerləşdirib. Həqiqət isə Azərbaycan polisinin davranış və peşəkarlığının əvvəlki illərə nisbətən bir xeyli irəlilədiyini göstərir.

As professionals would say, the police worked “cleanly.” Operative and neat. Not even a nosebleed in sight.

Sure, as a result of opposition propaganda there will be hundreds of people whose […] legs were “broken”, maybe Khadija [Ismayilova, RFE/RL] is already saying this list in verse or some local “Al-Qaeda” has shared this on its webpage. Reality is that Azerbaijan's police made some real progress in terms of conduct and professionalism.

But, contrary to such claims, tweets about the fate of those detained started to emerge as the protest died down, some of which were graver than usual.

Tazakhan Mirelemli (APFP) eye injured by police at #2aprel protest in #azerbaijan. http://twitpic.com/4g90f1

There were also allegations of forcing opposition activists to admit to various crimes so as to detain or charge them.

Sumgayit police accused APFP activists of murder, made some of them sign protocol. now they're at home, waiting for the prosecutor's summon

reportedly,crime case opened against 2prominent opposition members,1op.member sentenced 2 1month of pre-trial detention, no exact source tho

Opposition member detained during #april2 protest rallies in Baku is accused of illegal weapon possession #Azerbaijan

APFP vice-chairman Hasan Kerimov taken into resuscitation at #4 Hospital#azerbaijan #2april

All in all, there were reports that anywhere between 115-200 people being detained out of a reported 600-1000 participants, although some of them have since been released.

Azerbaijan: BBC Azeri & the potential of social media in the South Caucasus

Onnik Krikorian — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 05:13:06 +0000

whatwaswritten, Stealing news from Azerbaijan since 2011, translates and summarizes part of what was the last traditional radio broadcast from the Azerbaijani service of the BBC. As a result of cutbacks, BBC Azeri will now only be available online and its final program solicited various opinions on the potential of new and social media in the region from BBC Central Asia and Caucasus Service head Hamid Ismailov, Global Voices Caucasus editor Onnik Krikorian, and previously imprisoned video blogging youth activist Emin Milli.