Global Voices » Azerbaijani

Nagorno Karabakh: Cultural Destruction and Preservation in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict

Onnik Krikorian — Mon, 14 May 2012 07:40:51 +0000

During the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh, hundreds of thousands of ethnic Azeris and Armenians were displaced. With hundreds of settlements also razed, and thousands of monuments destroyed, Conflict Voices looks at the issue of cemeteries, some of which were destroyed, but also preserved during the war as well as in the 18 years since the 1994 ceasefire.

Armenia: Support for Georgi Vanyan

Onnik Krikorian — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 23:07:06 +0000

Following the cancellation last week of a festival of Azerbaijani films in Armenia's second largest city of Gyumri amid threats of violence, both the traditional media as well as online commentators have covered the campaign targeting the organizer, peace activist Georgi Vanyan.

Armenia and Azerbaijan remain locked in a bitter conflict over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh and, although the war waged in the early 1990s was put on hold by a 1994 ceasefire agreement, tensions remain high on the front line with scores of conscripts dying in skirmishes each year.

Yet, despite the need to find a lasting peace and to bring the two countries together, the activities of individuals such as Vanyan irk nationalists. Some press reports on last week's incident, for example, quoted two 'security experts,' a term used for those engaged in the online information war with Azerbaijan, attacking Vanyan for his cross-border peace building initiatives.

Ironically, their position, along with other nationalists in Armenia, almost exactly mirrored that of their counterparts in Azerbaijan who welcomed the festival's cancellation and gleefully applauded video of Vanyan being assaulted. Even so, there were also other more alternative voices online.

@KevorkO: What if we put all these petty, small-minded ethno-nationalists in a single cage at the zoo? #caucasus #Armenia #Azerbaijan

@Alisa_Bala: people should understand that #peace is above all things and we must treat peace advocates,the most courageous people

@DiTomtie: Peace activist was beaten in Armenia. Sad proof that our societies are not ready for a change.

Similar comments were also made on Facebook, but there were also posts on a number of blogs and online sites as well. One on the Foreign Policy Association blog, for example, recounted a meeting between Vanyan and the author, an Azerbaijani, in 2009:

From my personal humble experience in conflict resolution I learned that advocating for peace can be a tough job. Mostly, because the majority of people who live in conflict zones and were affected by wars, do not understand the point of reconciliation. All they know is that they lost relatives, possibly were displaced, or had to flee. What they usually want is for justice – what they perceive as one – to be restored. In conflict zones one can rarely meet sincere peace advocates who would stand up to their own people, and tell them the other side of the story.

In South Caucasus Georgi Vanyan is one of the few.

That’s why in South Caucasus Georgi Vanyan is a rockstar.

And, although unlikely to be speaking for many young Azerbaijanis, Be Positive! sent a message from one side of the contact line to the other:

We, Azerbaijani Youth with common sense, think that recent events in Armenia are exhausting. […]

[…]

We reproach the weak and insensitive events against Georgi Vanyan as we, Azerbaijani bloggers, are in need of and faithful to democratic values […]. We are proud to give moral support to Georgi Vanyan.

There were also posts on blogs such as HİPER QARAGÜRUH`un bloqu [az]:

Azərbaycanda olduğu kimi, Ermənistanda da sülh tərəfdarı olan, insanların ölmələrini, it kimi bir-birlərini didməmələrini, minlərlə insanın avtoritar hakimiyyətlərin oyunlarının qurbanı olmamalarını, bu mənasız müharibələrə sərf olunan enerjinin inkişafa, tərəqqiyə sərf olunmasını istəyən, ağlı başında, intellektual, ziyalı insanlar var. Bu insanlardan biri də Cənubi Qafqazda tanınmış erməni hüquq müdafiəçisi, rejissor, yazar, “Qafqaz Sülhməramlı Təşəbbüslər Mərkəzi”nin rəhbəri Georgi Vanyandır.

[…]

Qafqazın bu iki ölkəsi aşağı-yuxarı eyni taleni bölüşən dövlətlərdir. İkisində də eyni vəziyyətdir. Sosial-iqtisadi vəziyyət, ölkədəki korrupsiya, təhsildəki biabırçı durum, siyasi repressiyalar, ifadə azadlığı, ordudakı “dedovşina” və s. Hətta deyərdim ki, Ermənistan bizdən biraz irəlidədir. Çünki, pul Sarkisyan hakimiyyətində bizimkilər qədər çox olmadığına görə, rejim cəmiyyəti bu qədər təzyiq altında saxlaya bilmir. Buna görə də nisbətən irəliləyişlər əldə olunub. Amma ümumilikdə vəziyyət eynidir.

As in Azerbaijan, there are rational, intellectual and intelligent people in Armenia advocating for peace, wanting an end to the death of people, to hatred among them, and to the surrender of thousands of people to the games of authoritarian governments, wishing that the energy spent on pointless wars were directed towards development and progress instead. One of those people is the well known Armenian human rights activist, film director, writer and director of Caucasus Center of Peacemaking Initiatives in the South Caucasus, Georgi Vanyan.

[…]

These two countries of the Caucasus share more or less the same destiny. They are in the same situation: socio-economic situation, corruption, the shameful state of education, political repressions, freedom of expression concerns, hazing in the army etc. I would even say that Armenia is ahead of us a little. The reason is that [Armenian President] Sarkisyan’s regime does not have as much money as ours do and this is why their regime cannot apply as much pressure on society. This explains why they have comparatively some progress. But overall, the situation is the same.

The online portal, Kultura.az, also featured commentary [az]:

Tendensiya budur ki, Ermənistanda türkə, Azərbaycana nifrət etməyəni, Azərbaycanda isə kökündə “erməni” sözü olan istənilən nəsnəyə nifrət etməyəni dışlayırlar. Bu, 2 rejimin bəlkə də yeganə təbliğatdır ki, əhalinin inanmasına nail olublar.

Rejimlər müharibə təbliğatından necə istifadə edir, bunu uzun-uzadı bu yazıda anlatmayacağam. Əsas məsələ budur ki, nifrəti saxlamaqla hakimpreiyyətlərinin ömrünü uzadırlar. Kimsə bu nifrətin əleyhinə çıxsa, hakimiyyət tərəfindən qınanır, gözdən salınır, böhtanlar atılır, bəzən isə cinayət işi açılır və sair təzyiqlərlə üzləşir. Əhali də ona pis baxır, “erməni” və ya “türk” deyib təhqir edir, ona qız vermirlər və ya evdə qalır, onu təhqir etmək caiz sayılır və s..

[…]

Bu iyrənc müharibə təbliğatı, beyinlərə yeridilən nifrət propoqandası bitməyincə nə buralarda bir demokratik ölkə qurulacaq, nə də Qarabağ problemi həll olunacaq.

Bu rejimlər, bu təbliğatlar müvəqqətidir, bizə qalan nifrət yox, sevgidir – Vanyanın humanizm, sülh sevgisi.

The tendency is that those in Armenia who do not hate Turks and Azerbaijan, and those in Azerbaijan who do not hate anything with the word “Armenian” in it, are ostracized. This is probably the only propaganda from the two regimes that their people will believe.

I am not going to explain in this post in details how these regimes make use of war propaganda. The main thing is that by keeping hatred alive these regimes prolong the lives of their rule. Anyone who stands against this hatred is criticized, belittled, defamed by the government, or sometimes criminal cases are opened and pressure is applied. People look down on that person, they humiliate that person by calling them “Armenian” or “Turk”. No one wants their son or daughter to marry that person. Humiliating that person is considered a virtue etc.

[…]

Until this propaganda of a foul war, this brainwashed propaganda of hatred, ends, neither democratic systems will be established in these [countries] nor will the Karabakh problem be resolved.

These regimes, this propaganda, are temporary. What we will end up with is love, Vanyan’s humanity, his love for peace.

Undaunted by the actions against him in Gyumri, Vanyan eventually held his otherwise ill-fated Azerbaijani film festival at a restaurant outside the city limits and plans to hold another next week in Vanadzor, Armenia's third largest city. Moreover, there also appears to be another positive outcome from attempts to obstruct Vanyan's work.

Zardust Alizadeh, an Azerbaijani analyst and a speaker at one of Vanyan's recent cross-border events, was quoted as saying by NewCaucasus that he might now consider staging a festival of Armenian films:

Я считаю, что настоящее искусство – служит добру, гуманизму, сближению народов. И мне пришла в голову идея: а почему бы мне не повторить инициативу Ваняна в Азербайджане?

I think that real art serves the kindness, humanity and reconciliation of people. And an idea came to my mind: why not repeat the initiative of Vanyan in Azerbaijan?

Thanks to Global Voices author Pervin Muradli who translated from Azerbaijani into English for this post.

Azerbaijan: 17 March youth protest in images

Pervin Muradli — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 20:05:58 +0000

Narmin Noqte posts video footage and photos from the 17 March youth protest in Baku, Azerbaijan. The video is subtitled in English and available on Vimeo.

Azerbaijan: A Rare Opportunity for Opposition Youth to Protest

Nigar Hacizade — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 10:50:01 +0000

On 17 March, 2012, opposition youth in Azerbaijan held a rare sanctioned rally in one of the outer districts of Baku, the country's capital. The protest, attended by several hundred people, did not meet resistance or obstruction from the police; uncommon in recent years as most protests have been quickly and sometimes violently dispersed.

As has been customary since the 2011 Arab Spring, those attending shared photos and videos online, using the date's #17Mart hashtag on twitter. Pro-government voices responded with their own: #teessuflenirem (I find it regrettable) which criticized the protest as well as the opposition in general, and #Mart17dubl2, referring to last year's failed protests on 11 March and 2 April.

The Facebook event page for the “March 17 - Demonstration by youth for their future,” which was set up weeks prior to the gathering, listed three demands: the release of political prisoners, no corruption in the education system, and an end to the 20-year old conflict with Armenia over Nagorno Karabakh and the restoration of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity.

Organized by the Movement for Protection of Youth Rights, the rally featured many Azerbaijani flags as well as those of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. A local photographer and activist tweeted one of the most striking banners of the picket:

@HuseynovaTurkan: Bize #eurovision yoX #Garabag lazimdi #17mart #Azerbaijan http://twitpic.com/8xfsi8

@HuseynovaTurkan: We need Karabakh, not Eurovision!!! #17mart #Azerbaijan http://twitpic.com/8xfsi8

Other placards highlighted the problem of corruption, especially evident in the educational system, sarcastically parodying government slogans claiming incomparable achievements in such areas.

@HuseynovaTurkan: analoqlu tehsil isteyirik #Azerbaijan #17mart #azadliq #tehsil http://twitpic.com/8xll07

@HuseynovaTurkan: We want comparable education #Azerbaijan #17mart #azadliq #tehsil http://twitpic.com/8xll07 [Other placard in photo reads: Tax the teachers for bribes]

A Facebook album by Habib Muntezir features more photos from the protest, with some of the other banners reading “The President is good, those surrounding him are bad,” and “I sold my house to the government and bought a ticket to Eurovision,” which referred to the recent controversial eviction of homeowners as part of preparations for the international music competition.

Protesters also held banners referencing the recent attempt to intimidate through blackmail RFE/RL investigative journalist Khadija Ismailova. This young protester holds a banner that reads “Turn off the cameras. We are having sex.”

Blogger Aziz Karimov posted a link to video from the protest on Twitter:

Meanwhile, pro-government users urged their followers to instead gather around the Park Bulvar shopping mall for a petition campaign supporting Azerbaijan's 2020 Olympics bid. Others used the “regrettable” line.

@gunelibrahim: Azad media, azad internet, azad vetendash olan olkede “azadliq yoxdur” deyen genclere gore #teesuflenirem #17mart #mitinq

@gunelibrahim: I find it regrettable that there are young people who say “there is no freedom” in a country that has free media, free internet and free citizens. #teesuflenirem #17mart #mitinq

Another was the President of Integration of Azerbaijani Youth into Europe, as well as her deputy:

@GulselSafarova: Azerbaycan gencliyi olkesini sevmeli ve deyerini bilmedir.Sabah cixacaq genclerin bele olmadiqlarina gore #teesuflenirem

@GulselSafarova: Azerbaijani youth should love their country and know to appreciate it. I regret that those who will protest tomorrow are not such people. #teesuflenirem

@NargizXelef: Yeni gencler proqrami qebul edildi, gencler fondu yaradildi, her il gencler siyasetine yeni tohveler olur. Mitingdeki genclere #teesuflenirem

@NargizXelef: A new youth program was approved, a youth fund was established, there are new developments in youth policies every year. I regret seeing those youths at the protest. #teesuflenirem

A member of the pro-government youth organization İreli (Forward) also questioned the motive behind holding a protest ahead of Eurovision even though the opposition has already made it clear that they are aware of the increased visibility the international music competition, as well as its hashtag, gives them.

@niyazaliyev: Maraqlidir, aktivleshme Avroviziya oncesi mushahide olunur,Avropanin diqqeti bizde olduqda… #teesuflenirem #mart17dubl2

@niyazaliyev: It is curious that activism becomes prominent right before Eurovision, when Europe is paying attention to us… #teesuflenirem #mart17dubl2

While the rally was largely peaceful, police did however detain several people, a musician scheduled to perform at the protest among them.

@turkhankarim: Musicians Natiq Karimov and Jamal Ali have been arrested by police. Also young blogger Etibar Salmanli #17mart #Azerbaijan

Nevertheless, even if sparsely attended, the demonstration was arguably development for criticism in the oil-rich country after last year's protests were quickly suppressed by police. Indeed, subsequent refusals by the city administration to allow new demonstrations, as well as the arrest of young political activists such as Jabbar Savalan, had appeared to have dissuaded activists from taking to the streets again.

But, with Savalan released in December on presidential amnesty, and others on the occasion of Nowruz (also known as Persian New Year and one of the most important holidays in Azerbaijan) as well as the increased attention Eurovision is bringing, there could be some possibility for change. Certainly, with the spotlight on Azerbaijan, both opposition and government supporters are leaving nothing to chance.

Azerbaijan: Investigative Journalist Defiant After Blackmail Threat

Pervin Muradli — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 19:54:10 +0000

According to Freedom House, the situation with freedom of expression in Azerbaijan remains “dire,” with the authorities continuing “to imprison journalists and bloggers who express dissenting opinions.” However, as one outspoken critic of the government again discovered this month, there are also other ways to silence journalists and investigative reporters.

Khadija Ismailova, a journalist with Radio Free Europe's Baku Bureau who has frequently exposed high-level corruption in the oil-rich former Soviet republic, received a letter from an unknown person. Inside, a note, accompanied by photographs taken with a hidden camera, warned her to cease her journalistic activities by threatening to release a video of an intimate and personal nature.

Rather than succumb to the blackmail threat, however, Ismailova responded openly to the blackmail attempt on Facebook in a note written in Azerbaijani and English:

It says if I don’t stop working I will be hugely embarrassed. This threat is not a surprise for me. I have been doing investigative journalism for a long time. My investigation included the secret business of president Ilham Aliyev’s family and documented the facts of corruption on the highest level, disclosed the offshore businesses of members of the ruling family.

Currently I am working on several investigative reports. I have sent inquires to the Government offices about businesses of ruling family.

[…]

I would like to repeat that this is not the first time that these acts of blackmail have been used against fellow journalists. The motives of these acts are very well known to public. It is done to silence people who are outspoken. There are a serious crimes behind these acts.

Ismailova also spoke openly on an independent alternative television station available only on the Internet. “This practice [of intimidating journalists] needs to be stopped,” RFE/RL quoted her as saying. “[…] And I think the least I can do is to continue and fight back.”

Nevertheless, the video was released, and support for the embattled journalist increased. As European Parliament members voiced their support, so too did others such as renowned Azerbaijani photojournalist Rena Effendi:

[…] Here is a disturbing piece of news I got from one of my colleagues, an investigative reporter Khadija Ismayil, who was blackmailed by the authorities today. Khadija Ismayil is a journalist of very high caliber, professional and uncompromising in her integrity! For years, she has been investigating the subject of government corruption in Azerbaijan, a subject that nobody else dares to address in such thorough manner as she has done so far. Please see her statement below, as well as links to her articles. To be honest, given the gruesome state of affairs with civil society in Azerbaijan, I worry for Khadija's safety. I hope that she will stay safe and continue her important work. Please help spread the word […]

Emin Milli, one of the two ‘donkey bloggers' conditionally released from prison after receiving sentences that international organizations considered politically motivated, did just that:

Khadija Ismayil, one of the most professional and bravest journalists in Azerbaijan has been blackmailed by authoritarian system in Azerbaijan. For last several years she has conducted the investigations on shady business deals of the President's family. It is a taboo topic in Azerbaijan which many journalists and citizens are even afraid to talk about openly.

[…] In one of wikileaks cables she is called “ENEMY OF THE STATE” by the president of Azerbaijan during one of the meetings with American diplomats. It is important that international community, journalists around the world support her at this moment, condemn this disgraceful attempt of blackmailing and demand personally from the President Ilham Aliyev to guarantee her safety in Azerbaijan.

Yet, while the Azerbaijani government denied any hand in the blackmail attempt, others such as the South Caucasus Diary were not convinced:

The current case does not come by surprise. On February 23, 2012 CNBC's popular “Filthy Rich” program showed an episode about the filthy rich President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and his family. Khadija Ismayil was among the journalists who assisted in preparing the episode and bringing in the evidence.

[…]

Still wonder who ordered the video?

One Azerbaijani youth group even responded by warning tourists visiting Baku for this year's Eurovision Song Contest not to have sex in hotel rooms or rented apartments [RU] because they might be filmed clandestinely, and controversial Azerbaijani author Ali Akper [AZ] commented too, refering to a similar incident with another journalist.

İqtidar yenə öz sevimli məşğuliyyətinə qayıdıb. Çoxdandır bizə porno göstərmirdilər. Səhv etmirəmsə axırıncı dəfə oteldə masturbasiyaya tamaşa etmişdik. İndi də Xədicə İsmayılovanın yataq otağını çəkib yayıblar. Xədicənin atılan dırnağı belə ola bilməyəcək adamlar, bu video ilə onu nüfuzdan sala biləcəklərini düşünürlər. Zırt!

[…]

[…] biz tabuları qırmadıqca, mentalitetin dalından yağlı bir təpik ilişdirmədikcə, əxlaqçılığa yox demədikcə, bu psevdodəyərlərlə möhtəkirlik edən rejimə məğlub olacağıq. […] zırrama paradiqmalarla yaşayan millət, əsla və əsla azad ola bilməz. Nə qədər çox “eyibdür” desək, bir o qədər əziləcəyik, çünki vuayerist rejim hamımıza bir ağızdan “eyibdür” dedirdəcək […]

The government has returned to its favorite job. It has been a long time since we have been shown porn. If I am not mistaken last time we were watching masturbation at a hotel. And now, they taped the bedroom of Khadija Ismayilova. People who are not worth Khadija's finger nail think that they will belittle her this way. Never!

[…]

[…] until we break taboos, get rid of this mentality, say no to this morale, we will yield to a regime which speculates with pseudo-values. […] a nation which lives with slushy paradigms will never ever be free. As much as we say “it is shameful” we will be defeated that much because this voyeuristic regime will make us say “it is shameful” all together.

Blogger Turkhan [AZ] also weighed in, sarcastically seeming to refer to wearing the image of an untouchable local political figure.

Hər kəsi bir cür şəxsi intim həyatı var. İntim həyatın olması ayıb deyil. Amma bu intim həyatı gizlincə çəkib yaymaq şərəfsizlikdi. Camaatın yatağına girmək düzgün deyil!

Mən bilirəm ki, mənim də videom adiyyatı qurumlarda var. Amma bu videonu heç zaman yaya bilməyəcəklər. Çünki məlum hadisə zamanı T-shirt-imin qabağında və arxasında bir nəfərin şəkili gülümsəyir

Everyone has their own intimate private life. It is not shameful to have an intimate private life. It is dishonorable to tape an intimate private life secretly and to spread it. It is not correct to sneak into people's bedrooms!

I know relevant institutions have my videos too. But they will never be able to spread that video. Because during the notorious process there is an image of someone on the front and back of my T-shirt with a smile on his face.

The Azerbaijani government has promised to find those responsible for the video and bring them to justice, but critics point out that the undertaking to find those guilty of the March 2005 murder of journalist Elmar Huseynov has so far failed to yield any results. “This is a despicable attempt to discredit a journalist in the process of investigating of government corruption at the highest level,” said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Europe and Central Asia.

“The participation of state-owned press in this disgraceful smear campaign amounts to officially sanctioned extortion and brings disrepute on national leaders who claim to welcome journalists from more than 40 countries for the Eurovision Song Contest,” added the Committee to Protect Journalists on 14 March. Meanwhile, a petition to support Khadija Ismailova has been launched here.

Azerbaijan: Journalist responds to threats

Onnik Krikorian — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 19:43:41 +0000

Writing on Facebook, journalist Khadija Ismayil responds to threats warning her to stop her investigative reporting. Noting that this is not the first time journalists in Azerbaijan have found themselves the victim of intimidation, beating, and worse, Ismayil calls on the country's government to investigate the matter and for the president to ensure her safety.

Azerbaijan: Sari Gelin

Pervin Muradli — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 08:16:52 +0000

Əli Novruzovun bloqu [AZ] writes a review on a new novel penned by Ali Akbar, author of “Artush and Zaur,” the controversial tale of a homosexual love affair between an Armenian and Azerbaijani. In his new book, “Sari Gelin, Akbar takes his readers on the complicated journey of a young girl who reaches sexual maturity, explores her sensuality, and enters into the world of seduction. The blog says the novel challenges the patriarchal system, patriotism, traditional customs, and moral values in Azerbaijani society.

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.”