Leyla Yunus held a protest at the seminar of the NATO PA

The Director of the Institute for Peace and Democracy Leyla Yunus held a protest at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly seminar "South Caucasus: Challenges and Opportunities", which opened in Baku on Monday.

During a coffee break Yunus distributed to the foreign participants the text of the statement of the Center of Resistance to Repression and its supporters unfurled a banner "Freedom for prisoners of conscience!"

"What kind of European integration and stability do you talk about, when the country has 130 victims of political repression?" Yunus addressed the guests, pointing out that 40 of them are prisoners of conscience, and 90 - political prisoners, including 11 journalists and four human rights defenders.

Turning to foreign delegates, she further noted that in the context of the corruption and authoritarianism, in which Azerbaijan lives, the country has no future.

Referring to former U.S. Ambassador Matthew Bryza, the human rights activist expressed the hope that in his speech, he is like a man who knows Azerbaijan, giving true assessment of what is happening.

"Every year in Azerbaijan 10 people die from torture and for these crimes no one answers,” said Yunus. “The judicial system is corrupt and is under the control of the executive.”

Yunus noted that conflict resolution is not possible without the people's diplomacy, which the Azerbaijani authorities attempt to neutralize through repression.

 "Journalist Rauf Mirkadyrov was arrested and accused of spying only for participating in the draft of a joint Azerbaijani-Armenian website.

Irfan Siddit, head of the British diplomatic mission, which funded the project, could not answer the question from Yunus whether he thinks the funds allocated were for "espionage", as claimed by the Azerbaijani authorities.

Next Yunus pointed to a fundamental violation by Azerbaijan of the right to freedom of movement, giving an example of the ban on her leaving the country and on the family members of the head of the Women's Crisis Center Matanat Azizova to leave Azerbaijan. Azizova was forced to leave due to pressure on her.

Wishing the companions a pleasant tea, Leyla Yunus remarked, "Aliyev regime destroys the idea of ​​democracy in your tacit agreement that will lead the country to a disastrous end."

It is noteworthy that there were no attempts to stop actions by Yunus. -0 -