Rufat Safarov
“As a human rights defender, I strongly condemn the repressive operations against individuals imprisoned on fabricated charges. Unfortunately, I cannot follow the politically motivated trials that were postponed due to COP 29 but resumed immediately after COP. However, I am confident that the end of these inhumane repressions is near. Democracy will surely triumph, the Azerbaijani people will undoubtedly achieve freedom, and justice will inevitably prevail in our country!”
This statement by Rufat Safarov, the imprisoned executive director of the human rights organization "Line of Defense," was shared on his Facebook profile.
According to the human rights defender, the Azerbaijani government is determined to conclude the last month of 2024 with "intensified repressions."
“No one is surprised anymore by the arrest of individuals, whether one by one or in groups, and the application of the traditional slander mechanisms with equal ‘success’ against both individuals and groups. The government effectively uses fabricated witnesses and arguments to pin all its criminal activities on its opponents. Who doesn’t know that fraud, smuggling, and illegal drug trafficking are activities characteristic of this regime’s entire hierarchy from top to bottom? The arrests of Meydan TV staff on December 8 and prominent public and political figure Azer Gasimli on December 9 on trumped-up charges should be regarded as punitive operations by the regime against Azerbaijani society. I believe all progressive forces see it exactly this way,” Safarov’s statement, shared on his profile, reads.
The latest report on the new list of political prisoners by the "Union for the Freedom of Political Prisoners in Azerbaijan" states that between September 23 and December 12 this year, the number of political prisoners in Azerbaijan increased by 17, reaching 331 individuals. Most of the newly detained are Meydan TV staff, other media workers, human rights defender Rufat Safarov, political analyst Azer Gasimli, and religious activists.
Numerous international organizations, including the European Parliament and the U.S. Department of State, have appealed to the Azerbaijani authorities to release those "unjustly imprisoned."
Want to say
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Public figure and scholar Dr. Jamil Hasanly has expressed deep concern over the arrest of Natig Javadly, a journalist from Meydan TV, who has been charged with smuggling and placed in four months of pre-trial detention. For those familiar with him, this turn of events is hard to believe. Known for his integrity, intellect, and devotion to the truth, Javadly is considered one of Azerbaijan’s most respected journalists and thinkers.
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"Human rights" derive their foundation from justice. Justice is natural and connected to creation. From the moment of birth, this right is naturally granted to every person. Law, however, is something given — limited to what parliaments deem appropriate for us. The extent to which parliament represents justice and fairness is always a matter of debate.
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Why the Azerbaijani authorities use various institutions for the purpose of arresting journalists, writers, commentators, scientists, and activists is incomprehensible.
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In Ukraine, a brutal, bloody war caused by Russian aggression continues, claiming lives, destroying homes, demolishing infrastructure, and inflicting incalculable harm on the environment and surrounding natural ecosystems. Ukraine, more than anyone else in this world, strives for peace, as we bear the daily brutality of this Russian-Ukrainian war. We are at the forefront of the struggle for the right to life, freedom, and justice. Ukraine seeks a just peace that will lay a solid foundation for a stable future for Europe and the World, and the only way of achieving this is to implement President Volodymyr Zelensky's Peace Formula (the Ukrainian Peace Formula).
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