The German newspaper Tagesspiegel, citing its sources reported that top officials of Germany and members of the government will not go to the opening ceremony of the European Games in Baku, which will be held on June 12.
"Chancellor Angela Merkel will not travel to Baku. In addition, Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, who oversees the sport, also refused to travel to the capital of Azerbaijan. German President Joachim Gauck will be in Berlin on June 12," the newspaper said.
As the reason for the trip cancellation, the author Claudia von Zalzen calls the presence of more than 100 political prisoners - opposition activists, journalists and human rights defenders – in Azerbaijan.
In recent months, the regime intensified repression. The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders said that they are "mercilessly persecuted and punished" in Azerbaijan.
During the visit of President Ilham Aliyev to Berlin in February, Merkel said that she has "differences" with President Ilham Aliyev on the "realization of human rights."
Berlin has not sounded official explanation as to why no member of the government will go to the opening of the European Games.
As a rule, events of such a level are visited by the Chancellor, the Minister of the Interior or the President. Last year, Merkel did not visit the Winter Games in Sochi, because of Russia's policy towards Ukraine, but Interior Minister Maiziere went there, wrote Tasspiegel.
Another influential German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine reported that German athletes called for the release of political prisoners in Azerbaijan. Thus, they supported the call of the European Commissioner Nils Muzhnieks, OSCE Special Representative Dunja Mijatovic and the UN special rapporteur Michel Forst.
In the article by Christoph Becker it is said that Christian Schreiber - a representative of the German Olympic Confederation (DOSB) told the newspaper about the need to respect fundamental human rights and the right to criticism.
"We join the UN envoy calls on all countries to respect these rights," he stressed.
Michael Vesper, chairman of the DOSB, also welcomed the call of the Rapporteur.
"Of course, we stand in solidarity with people who are dealing with this problem in Azerbaijan, and, referring to the official Baku, confirm that the German Olympic Confederation is in favor of human rights and freedom of the press," he said. -02D-
Politics
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On November 14, a debate took place in the German Bundestag discussing the "horrific" human rights situation in Azerbaijan and COP29. Following the discussions, members of the Bundestag called on the Azerbaijani authorities to release political prisoners, including Gubad Ibadoglu, Anar Mammadli, Samir Ashurov, and all others detained for political reasons. The debate was initiated by Member of Parliament Frank Schwabe. In his speech, Schwabe emphasized that the COP29 conference was being held in Baku against the backdrop of severe human rights violations.
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The short film “Fragments”, by Iqbal Abilov, a Talysh researcher arrested in Azerbaijan, was shown on November 14 at the Madrid Indie Film Festival (MADRIFF) in the capital of Spain. The film was presented by the author's cousin, renowned stand-up comedian Idrak Mirzali-zadeh, who read a letter from Abilov to the festival participants. In the message, Abilov expressed gratitude to everyone who helped make the project possible. He also thanked those who continue to support him during his arrest due to his scientific and public activities. "I hope that justice will prevail soon, my innocence will be proven, and once I am released, I will come to Madrid and watch all the films at the festival," Abilov stated.
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On November 15, a telephone conversation took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke and the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, the Kremlin's press service reported. The two leaders discussed the "practical implementation of a number of mutually beneficial projects in the fields of industrial cooperation and transportation." The mutual interest in further comprehensive development of Russian-Azerbaijani strategic partnership and alliance was confirmed. It was agreed to continue contacts at various levels, according to the statement.
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Eco-activists from different countries held another action on the territory of the COP29 climate conference in Baku on Friday.
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