In the last 24 hours in Azerbaijan On June 9, a Popular Front Party motorcade was attacked as it entered Lankeran. A mob of people attacked the cars with eggs, sticks and pipes. The front and rear windshields of the motorcade vehicles were broken and some of the party members suffered injuries, according to Azadlig Newspaper. In January, a similar incident occurred in Lankeran involving a motorcade from the Musavat Party. On June 10, the Binegedi District Court ordered prominent Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova to perform 220 hours of public service due to an unpaid 400 AZN fine from the January 26 Baku protest in solidarity with Ismayilli protesters, RFE/RL reports. After being fined, Ismayilova declared a civil disobedience campaign against paying the fine, which Ismayilova said was unfounded as she and other fined protesters were merely exercising their right to freedom of assembly. Twenty-one people were fined a combined total of 15,250 AZN for participating in the January 26 protest. “The National Democratic Institute [NDI] continues its activity in Azerbaijan. The organization had submitted much information to the Azerbaijani government which showed how $1 million was spent,” US Ambassador to Azerbaijan Richard Morningstar told APA on June 10. Azerbaijan’s government threatened close NDI earlier in the year and accused the organization of plotting a “Facebook Revolution.” Free Youth Organization activist Ulvi Hasanil was interrogated in the general prosecutor’s office on Saturday, June 8. He told the media he expects to be interrogated again. His Free Youth Organization colleague Ilkin Rustemzadeh is currently in pre-trial detention and is accused of disturbing public order through the making a Harlem Shake video in a public park. During the ruling New Azerbaijan Party’s Congress held last week, incumbent president Ilham made the following remarks about Azerbaijan’s political opposition: "They are anti-national forces, treacherous, corrupt factions that were once in power, and that even today without any reason dream of power. […] Their method of political struggle is not a word, not an opinion; it is ‘Molotov cocktail.’ They are based not on people, and its will; they are based on grants, money issued from abroad. Their freedom of speech is to write denunciations, blackmail Azerbaijan before the international organizations, to spread their fabrications and slander. Their rules of conduct are to unite with the Armenians, slander Azerbaijan, to form a negative opinion about Azerbaijan. Of course, such groups will never be given place in the political life of Azerbaijan.” [Quote/Translation from Contact.az]
Posted on: Mon, 10 Jun 2013 14:39:00 +0000
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