HRW criticizes Azeri rights record
International rights champion Human Rights Watch
(HRW) has criticized the human rights situation in Azerbaijan.
In a new report, the group noted that the 2008 presidential election was a good opportunity for the country to demonstrate its commitment to improving its rights record, but this chance was missed. Opposition parties boycotted the vote, while freedom of assembly and the media was restricted, the report maintained.
The HRW report also criticized the imprisonment of several journalists in Azerbaijan. It emphasized that although five journalists were pardoned and released in late 2007, four others remain in jail.
The report further alleged that media representatives still face politically-motivated charges and cited the halt of foreign radio broadcasts on the national airwaves starting this year as a serious problem.
According to the HRW, cases of torture and abuse while in police custody, the political prisoners issue and violence against rights defenders continue to be major challenges for the country.
Zahid Oruj, deputy chairman of the pro-government Ana Vatan party, has termed the HRW`s assessment as biased. "The information cited in the report does not reflect reality."
Oruj said the authors of the report were guided by too-strict interpretations of standards, attempting to shape up Azerbaijan`s image on the world stage based on input from separate local NGOs. "It is wrong to express an opinion about the whole country by citing as an example just a handful of individuals arrested for their actions."
Oruj did not rule out that some problems do exist in Azerbaijan. Human rights violations do take place in courts, although rarely, however, this also happens in European countries, which have traveled a long road in their democratic development.
In a new report, the group noted that the 2008 presidential election was a good opportunity for the country to demonstrate its commitment to improving its rights record, but this chance was missed. Opposition parties boycotted the vote, while freedom of assembly and the media was restricted, the report maintained.
The HRW report also criticized the imprisonment of several journalists in Azerbaijan. It emphasized that although five journalists were pardoned and released in late 2007, four others remain in jail.
The report further alleged that media representatives still face politically-motivated charges and cited the halt of foreign radio broadcasts on the national airwaves starting this year as a serious problem.
According to the HRW, cases of torture and abuse while in police custody, the political prisoners issue and violence against rights defenders continue to be major challenges for the country.
Zahid Oruj, deputy chairman of the pro-government Ana Vatan party, has termed the HRW`s assessment as biased. "The information cited in the report does not reflect reality."
Oruj said the authors of the report were guided by too-strict interpretations of standards, attempting to shape up Azerbaijan`s image on the world stage based on input from separate local NGOs. "It is wrong to express an opinion about the whole country by citing as an example just a handful of individuals arrested for their actions."
Oruj did not rule out that some problems do exist in Azerbaijan. Human rights violations do take place in courts, although rarely, however, this also happens in European countries, which have traveled a long road in their democratic development.
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