Paris-Geneva, April 29, 2005
Dear Sir,
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), would like to express its deep concern over new threats against several human rights defenders in the Republic of Azerbaijan.
According to the information received from reliable sources, including the Azerbaijani Committee of the Helsinki Citizen’s Assembly (HCA), its Chairperson, Mrs. Arzu Abdullayeva, also co-President of HCA International, and Mr. Zardusht Alizade, President of the Caucasian Centre of Crisis Situations, were subjected to targeted threats and acts of harassment as a result of their activities.
Since the beginning of 2005, Mrs. Abdullayeva has indeed noticed on a number of occasions that she was followed by unknown individuals. Their presence was so obvious that she believes they aimed more to intimidate her psychologically rather than to subject her to surveillance.
Moreover, at the beginning of March 2005, Mrs. Abdullayeva began to receive anonymous death threats. On April 9, 2005, an unknown man came to HCA office in Baku, and asked for her, saying that he had an appointment with her. Mrs. Abdullayeva was not in the office and had no appointment with him. Later, the same man visited the HCA Commission for Migrants (another HCA location) looking for Mr. Zardusht Alizade. His colleagues explained that he worked in the same office as Mrs. Abdullayeva, which the man had visited before. Finally, later on the same day, an unknown man came to Mrs. Abdullayeva’s home and asked for her. As she was absent, her relatives refused to let him in.
The Observatory is all the more concerned by these events that they follow the killing of Mr. Elmar Husseinov, founder and editor-in-chief of the Monitor, a weekly newspaper which works closely with HCA. On March 2, 2005, Mr. Husseinov was shot dead by unknown attackers in the entrance hall of his home.
Moreover, the Observatory was informed that at the end of March 2005, Mrs. Leyla Yunus, a member of the Institute for Peace and Democracy, learned from some anonymous sources that her name was on the list of the special services and that she “had to be careful”.
Furthermore, at the end of March 2005, she was also subjected to defamation campaigns. Indeed, the speaker of the program 167 of Lider TV channel declared that Mrs. Yunus’ activities were directed against the Azerbaijani State and that she was nevertheless seeking the protection of law-enforcement bodies. In his conclusion, the speaker asked whether people such as Mrs. Yunus should be given protection at all. On April 5, 2005, ATV channel announced that the list of political prisoners submitted to the Council of Europe at the earliest of 2001 by Mrs. Yunus and Mr. Eldar Zeynalov, President of the Human Rights Centre of Azerbaijan (HRCA), included Mr. Azer Aslanov, a terrorist responsible for bombing a subway in July 1994 in Baku. This declaration appeared against a background of photographs of Mrs. Yunus and Mr. Zeylanov. However, Mr. Aslanov’s name does not appear in this list. Finally, on April 12, 2005, a defamatory statement on the evening programme Space TV channel accused Mrs. Yunus of not paying back a huge sum of money which Mr. Rahim Gaziyev, a political prisoner, had allegedly lent to her.
The Observatory recalls that Mrs. Yunus had already been subjected to a defamation campaign in May 2004, together with Mr. Zeylanov. The electronic media, pro-governmental television channels such as ANS-TV, Space and Lider as well as several newspapers, notably accused them of supporting terrorists and members of the “Chechen resistance movement” and of disseminating false information to European institutions (See Observatory Annual Report 2004).
The Observatory is deeply concerned about these acts of defamation, pressure and harassment against human rights defenders, and fears that these acts are part of the government’s policy that seeks to muzzle civil society and silence opposition voices in the context of the upcoming parliamentary elections scheduled for November 6, 2005.
The Observatory urges the Azerbaijani authorities to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mrs. Abdullayeva, Mrs. Yunus, Mr. Alizade and Mr. Zeylanov in all circumstances and put an end to any threats against human rights defenders, as well as to put an end to any defamation against Mrs. Yunus and Mr. Zeylanov.
The Observatory also calls on the Azerbaijani authorities to ensure that human rights defenders are permitted to carry out their work without any hindrances and take all necessary measures to comply with the provisions of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which was adopted on December 9, 1998, in particular its article 1, which states that “every person has the right, individually or collectively, to promote the protection and fulfilment of human rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international level” and its article 12.2, which states that “the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others, against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred to in the present Declaration.”
More generally, the Observatory calls on the authorities to guarantee the respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms in accordance with the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and other international instruments ratified by Azerbaijan.
In the hope you will take these considerations and requests into account,
We remain,
Sidiki KABA Eric SOTTAS
President of FIDH Director of OMCT