NIDA: we will continue to struggle and achieve democratic change

The Civil Movement NİDA issued a statement in connection with the spread by the Prison Service of a text from 6 convicted members of the organization to President Ilham Aliyev asking to release them.

"We have no information on the conditions under which our arrested members wrote this appeal. Therefore, we cannot express a thorough attitude to this.

As you know, the young members of NIDA for 19 months have been arrested unjustly. All this time, the authorities sought to make them write such an appeal in many different ways," the statement says.

It is indicated that the authorities have long been arresting youth, journalists, political activists, human rights defenders because of their political activities.

"And then, in order to justify their criminal acts and arrests of innocent people, to divert attention from internal and external pressures in the form inherent to the authoritarian regimes the authorities seek to obtain a written paper from the prisoners on what they want to hear. The authorities should be aware that with such methods they cannot get people fighting for freedom and democracy to abandon the struggle, to break their will. We expect a speedy release of our comrades arrested on slanderous accusations. We believe that together we will continue to fight and achieve democratic change," the statement by the movement NIDA says. -06D--