Protest actions indicate the absence of law and democratic principles

Baku/24.05.21/Turan: The self-expression of citizens through holding actions of protest in front of individual administrative departments show that the authorities do not defend the law and democratic principles in the country, said Rufat Safarov, one of the founders of the Public Association for Human Rights "Protection Line" in his interview with "Difficult question".

On the morning of May 24, the mothers of the “Ganja prisoners” came to the building of the Presidential Administration to demand freedom for their children in detention. However, the police forcibly put the complainants on a bus and dropped them away from the scene.

The human rights activist believes that the reason for such treatment is the prohibition of the right to freedom of assembly. He says that freedom of assembly is one of the fundamental principles of human freedom.

R. Safarov added that this right is reflected both in the legislation of Azerbaijan and in international conventions on human rights and freedoms.

"By itself, freedom of assembly has not only a political character, but also social, political aspects," he said. As an example, the human rights activist cited the Sovetsky residential quarter in Baku.

He recalled the actions held in front of the executive power of the Yasamal region because some residents cannot receive compensation for the demolished houses.

In his opinion, today's rally by the parents of “Ganja prisoners” testifies that citizens do not believe in law and courts in the country: these parents want freedom for their children, believe that their children are unreasonably arrested; their cases are not considered fairly.

He recalls the rally held on July 14-15, 2020 under the slogan “In support of Karabakh and the army.” According to the human rights activist, the arrests of people at the end of the rally were the result of this mistrust.

 “This shows that the law does not work in the country, even an action that is adequate to the policy of the authorities is not protected from a legal point of view,” Safarov said.

He noted that freedom of the media and similar indicators of Azerbaijan in international ratings are very low, so the authorities should think about their democratic image.

Safarov says that the government regards free assembly of people as an action directed against it. In fact, people just bring up their problems.

According to him, the public association for human rights "Line of Defense" conducts monthly monitoring of the state of human rights in Azerbaijan, it plans to  conduct such monitoring weekly. -05D-