Release of "prisoners of conscience" does not mean the resolution of the problem of political prisoners in Azerbaijan, said at today's roundtable, organized by the Public Chamber in the headquarters of the party "Musavat".
The problem of political prisoners comes from the essence of the ruling regime in Azerbaijan. The participants of the roundtable noted in their statement said that despite the release of "prisoners of conscience" on June 9, Shahin Hasanli and Vidadi Iskenderli also remain in custody ; they were arrested due to rally on April 2, 2011.
The Azerbaijani authorities do not want to solve the problem of political prisoners. Therefore, instead of the released political prisoners, they put in jail new ones," reads the statement of the "Public Chamber."
Thus, new political prisoners appeared due to the protests against the ban on hijab: Taleh Khasmammadov, journalists Anar Bayramli, Ramin Bayramov, editor of the "Khural" newspaper, Avaz Zeynalli, employees of "Khayal TV" Vugar Gonagov and Zaur Guliyev, brother –in-law of the head of the PFPA, Elnur Seidov, staff representative of civil society "Kura", Ilham Amiraslanov, and the editor of "Sado Tolyshi" Hilal Mamedov.
Without political reforms, the resolution of the problem of political prisoners is impossible, reads the statement. Heydar Aliyev released hundreds of political prisoners, and then many international and local human rights organization stated about the resolution of the problem. Even the institution of the PACE special rapporteur on political prisoners in Azerbaijan was abolished. However, then began the arrests of journalists, the wave of repression against opposition activists and civil society," said the head of the Popular Front Party, Ali Kerimli.
Aliyev’s regime can not survive without political prisoners, his policy is based on the management of the society in fear, said the leader of the party "Musavat", Isa Gambar.
"The problem of political prisoners is the nature of the Aliyev’s regime. Aggravating this problem the regime seeks to create internal tensions in the society. The power uses this problem in political bargaining with international organizations.
The authorities want to use this issue to maintain power in the presidential elections in 2013, but the international community no longer accepts these conditions," says Gambar.
According to a human rights activist Eynulla Fatullayev, the PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights confirmed the existence of 89 political prisoners in Azerbaijan. At the same time, 20 people from this list have been freed.
Special concern was expressed at the forum regarding the facts of the arrest of activists on charges of spying for Iran, illegal possession of drugs, etc. "The crisis in relations between Azerbaijan and Iran, is followed by arrests of citizens in Azerbaijan and Iran.
"I'm suspicious about recent arrests by the representatives of the National Security Ministry (NSM) of persons accused of terrorism. One of the residents of Zagatala region, mentioned in the recent report of the NSM, was killed in 2008 in Chechnya," said the Director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy, Leyla Yunus.
Famous scholar and social activist, Jamil Hasanli, noted that even such a brutal regime , as the Soviet government, did not arrest civilly active people on trumped-up charges of drug possession. He called an absurd the arrest of Hilal Mamedov for spying for Iran. "The arrest of such a smart, capable, educated man, on charges of espionage, is not only illegal, it is also immoral," said Hasanli.
Roundtable participants also expressed their gratitude to Amnesty International and PACE Rapporteur for political prisoners, Christopher Strasser, for their efforts to protect the rights of political prisoners in Azerbaijan. –03C06—
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