The situation with human rights in 2017worsened, expert Mammadli

Baku / 19.12.17 / Turan: There has been no progress in Azerbaijan in almost every sphere in the outgoing year, said in an interview to the program Cətin sual (Difficult issue) of the agency Turan by the political expert of the "Platform of the Civil Society" Nasimi Mammadli.

He identified three main problems. "The first is the occupation of Karabakh, the second is the provision of rights and freedoms, democracy issues, the third is the socio-economic situation. None of these problems was solved this year. Nothing has been done on the Karabakh settlement either inside the country or in the diplomatic arena. The same can be said about the measures in the military sphere," Mammadli said.

As for the guarantees of human rights and freedoms, the situation here is getting worse every year. Very hard is situation in the socio-economic field. "And if specifically, the year was remembered by an international corruption scandal, the export of money from the country illegally. Another important point is the undermining of public confidence in the authorities. Managing the country with something other than a forceful way was significantly complicated," Mammadli said.

Budget in comparison with previous years has greatly decreased. There is an increase in unemployment, poverty, higher prices, increased costs, and this is with a reduction in income.

The society was even more polarized. A small part of it became rich, and a large part became poorer. "Rights and laws are applied in the double standard. Those who export billions from the country are not punished. And people who have committed scanty crimes, innocent or maligned, are imprisoned for 10 years or more. During this year, the intellectuals continue to leave the country. Young people who have received an education abroad are quickly disappointed and leave the country," Mammadli continued.

"There are tensions and contradictions inside the government of Azerbaijan. Manage under the old rules became difficult," he added. The attitude of the authorities towards the opposition and civil society has not changed. The authorities consider these relations through the prism of their own interests. -03C--