Following the Azerbaijan´s fraud presidential election of last fall hundreds of opposition party activists were arrested, while some have left the country due to unbearable pressures and persecutions because of the political views. The seven opposition leaders, who are among these arrested people, went on hunger strike Tuesday. (13 July 2004)
Rigged elections’ background
The opposition leaders are accused of organizing the 15-16 October post presidential clashes between opposition and police that crushed a protestor to death and injured dozens. The clashes broke out in Baku after the preliminary results of the 15 October presidential elections — which Ilham Aliyev, the son of the incumbent Heydar Aliyev, won by landslide, according to official figures — became clear. The opposition and international observers said the vote was rigged with fraud. The International Election Observation Mission said the poll had been blighted by violence, slanted media coverage, intimidation and ballot rigging. It also blamed police for violence. Majority of the observers from the OSCE condemned the vote as failing to meet international norms, citing violations, including ballot-stuff and falsified counting.
Opposition´s “Big shots” in jail
Deputy heads of the main opposition Musavat (Equality) party Arif Hajili, Ibrahim Ibrahimli and Rauf Arifoglu, secretary general of Azerbaijan Democrat Party Serdar Jalaloglu, chairman of Umud (Hope) party Iqbal Agazade, head of Azerbaijan People’s party Panah Huseyn and chairman of Karabakh Veterans’ Society Etimad Asadov are also protesting against what they say the dragging out of their trial at the Heavy Crimes Court.
Cause for Hunger-strike
These opposition leaders are behind the bars in connection with the last October’s post-election riots. The arrested leaders demand a improvement of their conditions in the Bayil prison, where they are being kept.. The hunger-strike is expected to last for three days and the protestors have said they would attend the trials. They have asked the authorities not to put up obstacles to the protest while in the courtroom. The opposition leaders say the authorities are keeping them in separate single cells in Bayil prison in order to prevent them from discussing the trial process together. They also complain that they are forced to serve meals in plastic plates, which causes health problems for them. They say, for instance, one of them, Jalaloglu, have been poisoned recently because of the plastic plates.
