The situation in Seyudlu and a rally in support of Seyudlu in Baku. A report of the Council of Europe dedicated to prisoners, and an afterword to the Police Day...

Baku/03.07.23/Turan: The police checkpoint that was set up at the entrance of Seyudlu village in the Gedabek district following the protests on June 20 and 21 remains in place, according to an anonymous villager interviewed by Turan. Only residents are allowed entry into the village after their documents are checked. While there are no police officers present within the village, there have been no recent detentions. However, the ten individuals detained previously have not been released, as reported by a Seyudlu resident.

On July 2, a group of citizens organized a protest rally in Baku to denounce the violent actions and arrests carried out by the police in Seyudlu village. The demonstration, which took place in Fountain Square, saw no police intervention. It is believed that the protest was organized by Azerbaijani activists residing abroad. Elshad Hajiyev, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs' press service, stated on his Facebook page that although the event was planned, it did not receive any support.

During a ceremony at the Police Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Azerbaijani Minister of Internal Affairs, Colonel-General Vilayat Eyvazov, declared that an average of 87% of crimes had been solved in Azerbaijan over the past 20 years. Meanwhile, the "Prison Population 2022" report by the University of Lausanne for the Council of Europe revealed that Azerbaijan ranks third in terms of the number of prisoners.

Rufat Safarov, a human rights activist and head of the organization "Line of Defense," discussed these issues on the program "Difficult Question." He pointed out that similar situations have occurred multiple times in the history of Azerbaijan, albeit in different districts and villages. Safarov emphasized that the authorities are aware of the country's socio-political sentiments and the challenging socioeconomic conditions faced by the people, yet they respond to protests with violence. The actions in Seyudlu had no political or socioeconomic motivations, but rather represented a violation of the constitutional "right to life" (Article 27). The villagers repeatedly appealed to the administrative authorities, but with no response, they resorted to peaceful protests. In response, the authorities deployed Internal Troops, imposed a blockade, and repressed the protests, Safarov explained.

Regarding the failed protest action in support of the residents of Seyudlu, which was planned for Fountain Square, Safarov speculated that it likely failed due to poor organization. Regarding the statement made by Minister Vilayat Eyvazov about neutralizing around 24,000 criminal groups and gangs in the past 20 years, Safarov expressed skepticism, saying that such statistics, averaging 3.29 eliminations per day, do not inspire confidence.

Safarov also highlighted unsolved crimes, including the murders of journalist Elmar Huseynov 18 years ago and former Commander of the Azerbaijani Air Force Lieutenant General Rail Rzayev 14 years ago. He mentioned the attack on journalist Ayten Mammadova near her home last year, the repeated abductions and mistreatment of public activist Bakhtiar Hajiyev, and the detention and subsequent physical assault on Tofik Yagublu, a political figure and member of the coordination center of the National Council of Democratic Forces. According to Safarov, none of these crimes have been solved yet.