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For Eurovision Host, a Note of Discord
By JOE PARKINSON
EUROPE NEWS
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304065704577422320207285282.html
May 25, 2012, 4:17 a.m. ET
BAKU, Azerbaijan-Famed for outrageous spectacle and gaudy kitsch,
the Eurovision song contest is a quirky annual tradition usually more
synonymous with high camp than high politics: not so in Azerbaijan.
For this small ex-Soviet nation hosting the pop music competition's
finale for the first time on Saturday, Eurovision is a political
project designed to showcase the country's booming capital and its
European aspirations to millions of viewers.
Flush with revenue from an oil and gas windfall since its main export
pipeline began operating in 2006, the government has prepared for
Eurovision with a frenzy of construction and beefed-up state security.
Mathias Depardon for The Wall Street journal
A family from commemorate the birth of Heydar Aliyev in front of the
Heydar Aliyev Palace. Baku Azerbaijan 2012 A family from commemorate
the birth of Heydar Aliyev in front of the Heydar Aliyev Palace. Baku
Azerbaijan 2012
Ruled for nearly two decades by the late Heydar Aliyev, a former
KGB general, and now his son Ilham, Azerbaijan has poured some $100
million into infrastructure ahead of the event-cramming a multiyear
development plan for its capital Baku into less than 12 months.
Azerbaijan is the latest former communist country, including
Ukraine, Russia and Serbia, to win the right to host the frothy pop
extravaganza, but unlike in the other cases, international attention
on Azerbaijan's poor human-rights record threatens to damp the impact.
Over the past two months, one investigative journalist, Idrak
Abbasov, was hospitalized after being beaten, while a second, Khadija
Ismayilova, was threatened with the release of a sex tape, filmed
using cameras concealed in her apartment, unless she stopped writing
articles investigating the Aliyev family's alleged corruption. The
journalists allege that the government is behind the incidents. The
government denies those charges and has pledged to investigate.
Activists say hundreds of Baku residents weren't fairly compensated
when they were forced to leave their homes in order to make way for
construction projects. The government denies that.
Police on Monday briefly detained 10 protesters in central Baku during
a march demanding democracy and the government's resignation.
A protest in downtown Baku by a local group called "sing for democracy"
on Tuesday passed without incident.
Opposition activists, dominated by young Web-savvy university graduates
who campaign using social media, have sought to rebrand Azerbaijan's
"light your fire" slogan to "fight your liar," in a reference to
official corruption. Many activists lament the lack of support from
governments in Europe and the U.S. who see Azerbaijan as a stable
energy producer and an ally against Iran.
The government, unfamiliar with sharp criticism from its tightly
controlled media, initially appeared to have been caught off guard
by the criticism. But in recent days, officials have lashed out
at critics.
"We know the image and strength of these organizations but they
are losing the trust of our society," said Ali Hasanov, head of
the public and political issues department at the presidential
administration. "Their conclusions do not correspond with the reality"
and their statements are "anti-Azeri propaganda," he told a news
conference.
Officials say the government is willing to hear criticism but also
wants recognition for its achievements and its willingness to open up.
The increasingly bitter political reaction stands in contrast with
the festive atmosphere of Azerbaijan's showpiece capital, Baku. The
rapid completion of prestige projects has transformed this once-drab
Soviet city into a glittering showcase of marble and neon. Workers
have expanded a highway to the airport and the seafront boardwalk,
which runs along the Caspian Sea. Perched on a hill overlooking the
coastal promenade sit the so-called Flame Towers, a $350 million
complex with three buildings shaped like flames that at night are
illuminated with 100,000 lights showing moving flames or the Azeri
flag. In the city's ancient citadel, nightly the silk-road era maiden
tower, a signature landmark made of mud brick, has become the canvas
for a mesmerizing video art exhibition.
To stage the event, the Aliyev regime last month completed a cavernous,
23,000-seat palace ringed by diamond-shaped glass panels on a pier
jutting out into the Caspian Sea, the Baku Crystal Hall.
Across the city are other example's of the government's efforts to
project a new image. The government flew in more than 1,000 iconic
London taxi cabs to replace the dilapidated unlicensed cars that have
plied the city for decades. At Mr. Aliyev's behest, the Baku fleet
is deep purple, not traditional black, and drivers are required to
wear a uniform of navy slacks and light blue polo shirt.
In the evenings, crowds of Azeris, as if seeking confirmation of the
pace of change, gather at big screens along the capital's promenades
to watch glossy advertisements promoting the Eurovision contest and
trumpeting the city's transformation.
"I can't recognize the city anymore, but the way it looks now makes
me proud," said Rasul Huseynov, a 32-year-old engineer watching the
screen with his two sons, one of whom was draped in an Azeri flag.
"We all want to be a part of this and show the world that we're a
serious country."
That message is one Azerbaijan's rulers hope will lure tourists and
foreign investment and strengthen the country's influence in one of
the world's key energy corridors. At least 100 million people are
expected to watch the contest, which pitches pop acts from more than
40 nations against one another in a flamboyant battle of the bands.
The politics of the song contest have also reverberated around
Azerbaijan's fraught region.
Baku's neighbor Iran on Tuesday recalled its ambassador for
consultations after some of the Islamic Republic's clerics and
lawmakers criticized Azerbaijan's hosting of the contest, calling it a
"gay parade."
In March, neighbor Armenia, with whom Azerbaijan is still at war
over a disputed territory, pulled out of the competition, citing
the death of an Armenian soldier from an Azeri sniper attack. Baku
countered that Armenia had staged the killing to provoke a domestic
crisis that could benefit the ruling party in national elections.
Although opposition activists have successfully promoted their message
of discontent, most Azeris see Eurovision as a holiday and a badge
of national pride.
"We're a long way from perfect, but life is getting much better here,"
said Safer Aliyev, a 23-year-old engineering student. "Look at our
city: this is a great chance to show the world that Azerbaijan is a
modern nation and the country is behind that."
By JOE PARKINSON
EUROPE NEWS
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304065704577422320207285282.html
May 25, 2012, 4:17 a.m. ET
BAKU, Azerbaijan-Famed for outrageous spectacle and gaudy kitsch,
the Eurovision song contest is a quirky annual tradition usually more
synonymous with high camp than high politics: not so in Azerbaijan.
For this small ex-Soviet nation hosting the pop music competition's
finale for the first time on Saturday, Eurovision is a political
project designed to showcase the country's booming capital and its
European aspirations to millions of viewers.
Flush with revenue from an oil and gas windfall since its main export
pipeline began operating in 2006, the government has prepared for
Eurovision with a frenzy of construction and beefed-up state security.
Mathias Depardon for The Wall Street journal
A family from commemorate the birth of Heydar Aliyev in front of the
Heydar Aliyev Palace. Baku Azerbaijan 2012 A family from commemorate
the birth of Heydar Aliyev in front of the Heydar Aliyev Palace. Baku
Azerbaijan 2012
Ruled for nearly two decades by the late Heydar Aliyev, a former
KGB general, and now his son Ilham, Azerbaijan has poured some $100
million into infrastructure ahead of the event-cramming a multiyear
development plan for its capital Baku into less than 12 months.
Azerbaijan is the latest former communist country, including
Ukraine, Russia and Serbia, to win the right to host the frothy pop
extravaganza, but unlike in the other cases, international attention
on Azerbaijan's poor human-rights record threatens to damp the impact.
Over the past two months, one investigative journalist, Idrak
Abbasov, was hospitalized after being beaten, while a second, Khadija
Ismayilova, was threatened with the release of a sex tape, filmed
using cameras concealed in her apartment, unless she stopped writing
articles investigating the Aliyev family's alleged corruption. The
journalists allege that the government is behind the incidents. The
government denies those charges and has pledged to investigate.
Activists say hundreds of Baku residents weren't fairly compensated
when they were forced to leave their homes in order to make way for
construction projects. The government denies that.
Police on Monday briefly detained 10 protesters in central Baku during
a march demanding democracy and the government's resignation.
A protest in downtown Baku by a local group called "sing for democracy"
on Tuesday passed without incident.
Opposition activists, dominated by young Web-savvy university graduates
who campaign using social media, have sought to rebrand Azerbaijan's
"light your fire" slogan to "fight your liar," in a reference to
official corruption. Many activists lament the lack of support from
governments in Europe and the U.S. who see Azerbaijan as a stable
energy producer and an ally against Iran.
The government, unfamiliar with sharp criticism from its tightly
controlled media, initially appeared to have been caught off guard
by the criticism. But in recent days, officials have lashed out
at critics.
"We know the image and strength of these organizations but they
are losing the trust of our society," said Ali Hasanov, head of
the public and political issues department at the presidential
administration. "Their conclusions do not correspond with the reality"
and their statements are "anti-Azeri propaganda," he told a news
conference.
Officials say the government is willing to hear criticism but also
wants recognition for its achievements and its willingness to open up.
The increasingly bitter political reaction stands in contrast with
the festive atmosphere of Azerbaijan's showpiece capital, Baku. The
rapid completion of prestige projects has transformed this once-drab
Soviet city into a glittering showcase of marble and neon. Workers
have expanded a highway to the airport and the seafront boardwalk,
which runs along the Caspian Sea. Perched on a hill overlooking the
coastal promenade sit the so-called Flame Towers, a $350 million
complex with three buildings shaped like flames that at night are
illuminated with 100,000 lights showing moving flames or the Azeri
flag. In the city's ancient citadel, nightly the silk-road era maiden
tower, a signature landmark made of mud brick, has become the canvas
for a mesmerizing video art exhibition.
To stage the event, the Aliyev regime last month completed a cavernous,
23,000-seat palace ringed by diamond-shaped glass panels on a pier
jutting out into the Caspian Sea, the Baku Crystal Hall.
Across the city are other example's of the government's efforts to
project a new image. The government flew in more than 1,000 iconic
London taxi cabs to replace the dilapidated unlicensed cars that have
plied the city for decades. At Mr. Aliyev's behest, the Baku fleet
is deep purple, not traditional black, and drivers are required to
wear a uniform of navy slacks and light blue polo shirt.
In the evenings, crowds of Azeris, as if seeking confirmation of the
pace of change, gather at big screens along the capital's promenades
to watch glossy advertisements promoting the Eurovision contest and
trumpeting the city's transformation.
"I can't recognize the city anymore, but the way it looks now makes
me proud," said Rasul Huseynov, a 32-year-old engineer watching the
screen with his two sons, one of whom was draped in an Azeri flag.
"We all want to be a part of this and show the world that we're a
serious country."
That message is one Azerbaijan's rulers hope will lure tourists and
foreign investment and strengthen the country's influence in one of
the world's key energy corridors. At least 100 million people are
expected to watch the contest, which pitches pop acts from more than
40 nations against one another in a flamboyant battle of the bands.
The politics of the song contest have also reverberated around
Azerbaijan's fraught region.
Baku's neighbor Iran on Tuesday recalled its ambassador for
consultations after some of the Islamic Republic's clerics and
lawmakers criticized Azerbaijan's hosting of the contest, calling it a
"gay parade."
In March, neighbor Armenia, with whom Azerbaijan is still at war
over a disputed territory, pulled out of the competition, citing
the death of an Armenian soldier from an Azeri sniper attack. Baku
countered that Armenia had staged the killing to provoke a domestic
crisis that could benefit the ruling party in national elections.
Although opposition activists have successfully promoted their message
of discontent, most Azeris see Eurovision as a holiday and a badge
of national pride.
"We're a long way from perfect, but life is getting much better here,"
said Safer Aliyev, a 23-year-old engineering student. "Look at our
city: this is a great chance to show the world that Azerbaijan is a
modern nation and the country is behind that."