Protesters sentenced to prison
By Jahan Aliyeva (Sun Staff Writer)
Baku Sun, Azerbaijan
Sept 3 2004
BAKU — Nasimi district court handed down prison sentences to six
members of the Organization for Liberation of Karabakh (QAT) on Monday.
Judge Famil Nasibov handed out various prison sentences ranging from
three years to five years to QAT chairman Akif Nagi, deputy chairman
Firudin Mamedov, and Ilkin Gurbanov, Mursal Hasanov, Rovshan Fatiyev
and Manaf Kerimov. QAT activists and relatives of the defendants who
protested this decision in the court were forced out and dispersed
by police.
The six men were sentenced to imprisonment for their participation
in a protest against the presence of two Armenian military officers
at a NATO-sponsored conference called Best-Efforts-2004 held in Baku,
June 21.
According to the indictment, the imprisoned QAT members are charged
with attempting to enter Grand Hotel Europe, where a NATO conference
was being held, by using force against police and guards, interfering
with traffic and attempting to prevent the NATO event. The court
sentence noted that as a result of the QAT protest, Grand Hotel Europe
suffered 1 million 700 thousand AZM ($347) in damages.
Parties from across the political spectrum have condemned the
verdict as “unjust”, including political organizations, public
activists, members of the Parliament, pro-governmental and opposition
organizations.
On September 1, the first day of the autumn parliament session,
several pro-governmental deputies and MP’s criticized the sentencing
of the convicted QAT activists.
MP, Jahangir Huseynov, said that “it was necessary to arrest not OKL
activists, but employees of the prosecutor’s office and the court”,
while Zeynab Khanlarova, also a pro-governmental MP, said that “these
persons (from the court) have Armenian blood in their veins”.
Some MP’s stressed that they are ready to reimburse the amount of
damages that was suffered by Grand Hotel Europe during the protest.
Murtuz Aleskerov, speaker of the parliament also supported the QAT
protest against the arrival of Armenians to Baku.
“However, this is the NATO requirement. If we consider NATO assistance
to settle the Karabakh conflict, then we are the subject to this,”
he added.
However, Zahid Oruj, MP from the pro-governmental Ana Vatan (HomeLand)
Party thinks that there has been a certain misunderstanding between
the government, NATO and the people of Azerbaijan that led to the
sentencing.
“There is a simple thing in the heart of the matter. Azerbaijan
has been a member of the Partnership for Peace Program within NATO,
since 1994, and actively is taking part in all of the events in the
framework of this program. In general, NATO applies to the nations that
want to take part. It contradicts NATO’s principles to force nations
to take part in such events. Armenia, which has no interest in NATO,
had special interests for taking part at NATO’s seminar that was held
in Azerbaijan,” Oruj told Baku Sun.
Oruj explained that Armenian Defense Minister Serge Sarkissian
repeatedly stated that Armenia not only doesn’t want to become a
member of NATO, but that it also contradicts Armenia’s strategy in
its foreign policy. Defense cooperation with Russia is more of a
priority for Armenia than becoming a member of NATO.
“The point is that Armenia was worried about the developing relations
between NATO and Azerbaijan, thus they planned to make troubles with
these relations. They tried to tarnish the Azerbaijani people’s image
in front of NATO and the member countries. It was the information war
and Armenia managed to cause problems. Two Armenian officers came
and left, but the entire nation is at odds, the relations between
the government and people are weakened.”
Shamil Mehdi, deputy chairman of QAT, who thinks that the court’s
verdict is a “political order” said in an interview with Baku Sun
that “this verdict is not against QAT members, but against the entire
Azerbaijani nation.”
Mehdi believes that the imprisoned QAT members are playing the role
of catalysts in Azerbaijan’s society.
“The Azerbaijani community has been in something like a deep depression
for a long time, in terms of the Karabakh issue, but these six people
proved enough that Azerbaijanis will never concur to the occupation
of their lands. No one can force the nation to accept this.”
“Actually, there should have been nation-wide protests against this
unjust verdict, but it didn’t happen because, people are afraid to
be intimidated. The real situation is that people know that if they
protest even once, all of their family members will suffer.
We have information that high-ranking officials from government
organizations oppose this verdict too. But we all know the reasons
why they keep silent,” Mehdi said.
He added that the government does citizens to hold any protests that
openly show their disagreement.
“So, what should we do? Then let us greet the Armenians with flowers
and make sacrifices at their feet next time they arrive at the
airport,” he said ironically, referring to the planned arrival of
Armenian officers in Baku later this month to take part in NATO’s
military training later this month.