-Why is Republic of Azerbaijan still invited to meetings of the Council of Europe and the UN, while Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe is being banned from international podia? This was one of the central questions during the seminar ‘Azerbaijan after November 6th elections: Still in the Aliev regime’s strong grip’ on November 29 in the Human Rights House in Oslo with Natig Alaskarov, Azerbaijani opposition member in exile, right, and Tural Sardar, son of son of opposition leader Sardar Jalaoglu, left. (07-DEC-05)
|
Paper democracy Normal From left to right: Natik Alaskarov, Maria Fremming (translator), Ane Tusvik Bonde and Berit Lindeman. Photo: Ralph Pluimert, HRH The OSCE report on the parliamentary elections in Aserbaijan can be downloaded here: |
We, the undersigned members of the Network of Human Rights Houses and other international civil society organisations urge the government of Georgia to immediately end the ongoing repressions against independent voices. We condemn the use of illegal and disproportionate force against largely peaceful protestors, physical attacks against civil society representatives, alleged illegal detention of a well-known blogger, coordinated campaign of smear, harassment and intimidation against journalists, human rights defenders and their family members, including children.
Human Rights House Foundation joins a coalition of press freedom, journalists and human rights organizations led by The International Press Institute (IPI) in writing to Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Kobakhidze, urging him to withdraw the Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence, guarantee the safety of journalists and uphold press freedom in Georgia.
As Georgian authorities look to introduce new “foreign agent” legislation, HRHF’s Kety Abashidze outlines the situation unfolding in the country and highlights the importance of international organisations, civil society and like-minded states to show solidarity with the Georgian public and civil society and to call on the authorities to abandon the law.
-Why is Azerbaijan still invited to meetings of the Council of Europe and the UN, while Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe is being banned from international podia? This was one of the central questions during the seminar ‘Azerbaijan after November 6th elections: Still in the Aliev regime’s strong grip’ on November 29 in the Human Rights House in Oslo. Natig Alaskarov, Azerbaijani opposition member in exile, right, and Tural Sardar, son of son of opposition leader Sardar Jalaoglu, left, shed their light on the recent development in the former Soviet state on the seminar that was organised by the Human Rights House Foundation and the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. (07-DEC-05)
-The problem, Lindeman, right, said, is that there simply isn’t enough will for democracy and democratic elections in Azerbaijan. The country can best be characterised as a so-called ‘managed democracy’. Democracy as a system is verbally extolled and the legal framework satisfies all the conditions for a good system, but in practice there is widespread suppression and election rigging. The Azerbaijani democracy is nothing more than a paper democracy. Ane Tusvik Bonde of the Human Rights House Foundation, reminded to the widespread arrests of members of the opposition before the election of November 6 as distinct from mass arrests after the 2003 presidential elections. This time the arrests did not only take place in the capital Baku, but also in the regions. Also youth movements were stricken. 