Azernews.Az

BAKU – The European Union has said it remains "deeply concerned" over what it called the continued lack of respect of fundamental freedoms in Azerbaijan, following last weekend’s unauthorized rally in downtown Baku that was dispersed by the police.

In a statement issued on Thursday, the EU recalled its statement of March 17 on the arrests of youth activists in Baku, saying it was concerned about the fact that on April 2 "a peaceful demonstration in Baku was systematically dispersed and that a large number of participants were arrested and immediately sentenced to administrative detention without proper legal defense."

"Some journalists were prevented from reporting and filming the demonstration and four journalists were temporarily arrested. In addition, opposition party members had been arrested or confined to house arrest ahead of the demonstration. Some have been charged with criminal offences in relation to the conduct of this peaceful movement. We call on the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately release all individuals concerned."

During the rally, organized by the Public Chamber umbrella opposition group, 70 people were detained, according to official sources, while the opposition put the figure at more than 200.

The EU called on Azerbaijan to guarantee the right of journalists to freely exercise their profession and promote the necessary conditions to allow them to do so in safety.

"In this context we are concerned about the severe beating by unknown persons of the Azadlig newspaper reporters Seymur Haziyev on 26 March and Ramin Deco on 4 April. We support the statement by the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media on the first case and we call upon the Azerbaijani authorities to condemn these incidents publicly, to do their utmost in order to bring the perpetrators of violence against journalists to justice and to prevent future incidents of this kind."

The statement claimed that these developments run counter to Azerbaijan’s OSCE commitments in the fields of freedom of assembly, expression and freedom of the media. The EU reiterated the assertion of the OSCE chairman during his recent visit to Baku that freedom of assembly was essential to any democratic state. It also urged Azerbaijan to go further with democratic reforms.

The EU said it stands ready to continue to support further reforms in Azerbaijan guided by the values laid down by the OSCE, the Council of Europe and the EU. Finally, the EU reiterated the importance it attaches to intensified relations with Azerbaijan and invited the Azerbaijani government "to make full use" of the opportunities offered by the Eastern Partnership and European Neighborhood Policy initiatives.

Azerbaijani officials have said that on the contrary, opposition activists were responsible for violence during the antigovernment rally and broke the windows of some nearby stores. The government insisted that no restrictions are imposed on freedom of assembly and freedom of expression in Azerbaijan and labeled international organizations’ criticism over its handing of the protest as attempts to pressure Baku.

Head of Azerbaijan’s Presidential Administration’s foreign relations department, Novruz Mammadov, said that "unfortunately, it is impossible to regard as fair and unbiased" the EU’s statement on the April 2 rally.

"This statement has negative impact on the spirit of cooperation between the authorities and opposition and aims to cause tension in Azerbaijan," Mammadov told the Baku-based APA news agency.