Relatives of a political emigrant were interrogated by the police

Baku / 04.26.19 / Turan: The father and brother of Vugar Niftaliyev, who is in political emigration in Europe, were detained the day before. According to Vugar Niftaliyev, on the morning of April 25, his 70-year-old father Azizaga Niftaliyev was summoned to the Jalilabad district police station. A political emigrant's brother, Vusal Niftaliyev, was taken to the police directly from work. This is the fourth time when his relatives are taken to the police.

This time, Vusal Niftaliyev was not told of the official reasons for the transfer to the police. Unofficially, he was accused of conducting "anti-government propaganda" in the city of Geytepe, where he lives and finances his brother Vugar. "My brother has a small workshop. The money he earns is barely enough to feed his family. How can he finance me?" continued the political émigré. He called the madness of the persecution of his relatives in Azerbaijan because of his activities in Europe. According to Vugar Niftaliyev, his father and brother were released last night. Jalilabad police did not comment on the matter.

According to human rights activist Ogtay Gyulalyev, recently pressure on relatives of political immigrants has again increased. Recently, relatives of Valeh Nasibov and Orhan Agayev were brought to the police. The human rights activist believes that these measures are related to the holding of political rally in Europe of against corruption in Azerbaijan, in support of political prisoners. "Pressure on relatives of political emigrants is a continuation of the policy of forcing fear and intimidation of the activists themselves living abroad. But I don"t think that the activists will stop their activities because of this pressure," said Gulaliyev.

According to human rights activist Rasul Jafarov, no one should be subjected to pressure and punishment for criticizing officials. He called the persecution of people because of his relatives a recurrence of vicious Soviet practices. This is contrary to the laws of Azerbaijan and the country's international obligations. Jafarov called on the authorities to stop this practice, which violates the rights and freedoms of citizens and is detrimental to the country's image.

Those who violate the rights of citizens should be punished regardless of rank and position, Jafarov stressed. -06d--