We are citizens of a different country

Another youth activist, was arrested today right from under the noses of his very own parents. Today, on March 8th, Rashadat Akhundov was sentenced to 5 days of imprisonment. And another activist, this time deputy chair of youth branch of an opposition party- Musavat, Sakhavat Soltanli was too arrested on March 8th. Soltanli was charged with auto- hooliganism. 

There are rumors that more activists will be arrested over the course of the next few days and any protests planned for March 11th, will be dispersed. 

It all seems out of this world- as if we are not citizens of this country but from somewhere else and so anything we say is used against us. Oh, wait a second, I think I know why, I have completely forgotten about it- we are all HOOLIGANS- and so the Azerbaijani authorities are punishing all its young hooligans on same charges (though I have to say auto hooliganism is something new). Its just there is this one thing- it looks funny from the outside- one huge and rich government is scared of its progressive youth?! Hmm... strange doesn't it?! 

Honest Azerbaijani police or how it endlessly plants drugs on others? (Updated)

It is getting a little tiring to hear the same story every time. It looks like hooliganism and drug possession are the two most popular accusations used by Azerbaijani police when they arrest activists, journalists and anyone who is not chanting under government tune. 

Another youth activist, 19-year-old Cabbar Savalan and a member of youth branch of Popular Front Party was arrested in Sumgayit. Police claims they found 0.17 grams of drugs on Cabbar who was allegedly planing to sell these drugs. The Sumgayit City Court charged him with two months of imprisonment. His friends and supporters claim his arrest has been orchestrated and is a punishment for Cabbar's activism.

Cabbar, is a fourth year student at the Sumgayit State University, majoring in History.

According to AzeriReport, Cabbar, posted the following update on the Facebook page of the Party's Public Chamber days before his arrest:

I am very serious friends. It is time to leave the Facebook and go to the streets. I am talking about the time and location of the protest activity. Let us organize a Day of Wrath at Freedom Square on February 11 at 12.00. If you have any other suggestions, let me know.

It is possible that current unrest in the Arab world, triggered Azerbaijani authorities in its decision to strengthen the control over alternative voices, oppositional groups and dissidents. 

November 11

Yesterday, November 11th, was the day when a court decision in the capital of Baku changed lives of two young bloggers- Emin Milli and Adnan Hajizada sentencing them to imprisonment based on faked charges of hooliganism and inflicting of intentional body harm exactly a year ago on this day. 

Also yesterday, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan agreed to finally approve the verdict to release Eynulla Fatullayev issued by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). While initially local news outlets reported on most of the charges against arrested journalist and editor-in-chief of Realniy Azerbaijan imprisoned in 2007 drop, it didn't take long for the Supreme Court come up with a reason to keep him in prison. 

The Supreme Court, retroactively increased the sentence on tax evasion- initially two months- to two years and three months and 15 days. Eynulla already served two years and three months worth of his sentence, however, in December 2009, he was given additional charge for drug possession ( in prison (dismissed by Fatullayev himself however not accepted at the court). So, with this final decision, and the total time Eynulla already served, the Court managed to keep him in prison and claim that the time he has spent already in prison will be deducted from the time he was charged with tax evasion (which is exactly two years, three months and 15 days) and keep him for drug possession.

According to Elchin Sadigov, the lawyer of the arrested journalist "The Plenum had not authority to retroactively increase the prison sentence for the defendant".   

Sitting at a 7th South Caucasus Media Conference in the capital of Georgia, organized by the OSCE,  and listening to the representative from Azerbaijan Presidential Apparatus saying that Emin and Adnan were just hooligans, arrested with other 2000 hooligans in 2009, one cannot but wonder where Azerbaijan is going... Its so ironic that whenever it works for the government and authorities it claims that it follows European or American standards but for some reason none of these standards are applied on the ground when it comes to many things, including freedom of media, access to information, journalists' safety and much more...