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HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH URGES AZERBAIJAN TO END HOSTILE CAMPAIGN OF INTIMIDATION AGAINST WRITER AKRAM AYLISLI
http://www.tert.am/en/news/2013/02/12/hrw/
12.02.13
The Azerbaijani government should immediately end a hostile campaign
of intimidation against writer Akram Aylisli, Human Rights Watch
said today.
Aylisli recently published a novel depicting relationships between
ethnic Azeris and Armenians in Azerbaijan.
Foreign governments and intergovernmental organizations of which
Azerbaijan is a member should speak out against this intimidation
campaign. They should urge the authorities to immediately investigate
those responsible for threats against Aylisli, and to respect freedom
of expression.
"The Azerbaijani authorities have an obligation to protect Akram
Aylisli," said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at
Human Rights Watch. "Instead, they have led the effort to intimidate
him, putting him at risk with a campaign of vicious smears and
hostile rhetoric."
Aylisli, a member of the Union of Writers of Azerbaijan since the
Soviet era, is the author of Stone Dreams. The novel includes a
description of violence by ethnic Azeris against Armenians during the
1920s, and at the end of the Soviet era, when the two countries engaged
in armed conflict. Aylisli told Human Rights Watch that he saw the
novel as an appeal for friendship between the two nations. The novel
was published in Friendship of Peoples, a Russian literary journal,
in December 2012.
Aylisli's sympathetic portrayal of Armenians and condemnation of
violence against them caused uproar in Azerbaijan. An escalating
crescendo of hateful rhetoric and threats against Aylisli started at
the end of January 2013, culminating in a February 11 public statement
by Hafiz Hajiyev, head of Modern Musavat, a pro-government political
party. Hajiyev publicly said that he would pay $12,700 to anyone who
would cut off Aylisli's ear.
"Azerbaijan's authorities should immediately investigate and hold
accountable anyone responsible for making threats against Aylisli,
and ensure his personal safety," Williamson said.
In the wake of the public vitriol, Aylisli's wife and son were fired
from their jobs. On February 4, a senior officer at Azerbaijan's
customs agency forced Najaf Naibov-Aylisli, Aylisli's son, to sign
a statement that he was "voluntarily" resigning from his job as
department chief. Aylisli told Human Rights Watch his son had received
no reprimands during his 12 years on job.
"The government of Azerbaijan is making a mockery of its international
obligations on freedom of expression," Williamson said. "This
is shocking, particularly after Azerbaijani officials flocked to
Strasbourg last month to tout the government's human rights record
at the Council of Europe."
http://www.tert.am/en/news/2013/02/12/hrw/
12.02.13
The Azerbaijani government should immediately end a hostile campaign
of intimidation against writer Akram Aylisli, Human Rights Watch
said today.
Aylisli recently published a novel depicting relationships between
ethnic Azeris and Armenians in Azerbaijan.
Foreign governments and intergovernmental organizations of which
Azerbaijan is a member should speak out against this intimidation
campaign. They should urge the authorities to immediately investigate
those responsible for threats against Aylisli, and to respect freedom
of expression.
"The Azerbaijani authorities have an obligation to protect Akram
Aylisli," said Hugh Williamson, Europe and Central Asia director at
Human Rights Watch. "Instead, they have led the effort to intimidate
him, putting him at risk with a campaign of vicious smears and
hostile rhetoric."
Aylisli, a member of the Union of Writers of Azerbaijan since the
Soviet era, is the author of Stone Dreams. The novel includes a
description of violence by ethnic Azeris against Armenians during the
1920s, and at the end of the Soviet era, when the two countries engaged
in armed conflict. Aylisli told Human Rights Watch that he saw the
novel as an appeal for friendship between the two nations. The novel
was published in Friendship of Peoples, a Russian literary journal,
in December 2012.
Aylisli's sympathetic portrayal of Armenians and condemnation of
violence against them caused uproar in Azerbaijan. An escalating
crescendo of hateful rhetoric and threats against Aylisli started at
the end of January 2013, culminating in a February 11 public statement
by Hafiz Hajiyev, head of Modern Musavat, a pro-government political
party. Hajiyev publicly said that he would pay $12,700 to anyone who
would cut off Aylisli's ear.
"Azerbaijan's authorities should immediately investigate and hold
accountable anyone responsible for making threats against Aylisli,
and ensure his personal safety," Williamson said.
In the wake of the public vitriol, Aylisli's wife and son were fired
from their jobs. On February 4, a senior officer at Azerbaijan's
customs agency forced Najaf Naibov-Aylisli, Aylisli's son, to sign
a statement that he was "voluntarily" resigning from his job as
department chief. Aylisli told Human Rights Watch his son had received
no reprimands during his 12 years on job.
"The government of Azerbaijan is making a mockery of its international
obligations on freedom of expression," Williamson said. "This
is shocking, particularly after Azerbaijani officials flocked to
Strasbourg last month to tout the government's human rights record
at the Council of Europe."