Opposition news

MUSAVAT STRUGGLE FOR OFFICE

The Musavat party held a number of protest actions in a series of the ongoing row with the authorities over leasing an office for the party.

Two pickets were held in two different venues, in front of the Mayor's Office of Baku and the Property Department under the Ministry of Economic Development. The protesters came up with mottoes "hands off Musavat", "stop political crackdown", "this is our headquarters", etc.

Addressing the protest action, deputy chairman of the party Arif Hajiyev said the Council of Europe should take interest in not just political prisoners, but also political parties exposed to persecution.

The Department told the protesters that they would respond to an official letter of Musavat shortly.

Support

Spokesman for the US National Democracy Institute (NDI) in Azerbaijan Alexander Shvanko and national human rights activists pledged support to Musavat in a meeting with its chairman Isa Gambar Wednesday.

T he parties focused on the political situation in the country and around Musavat, as well as the relations between the party and the NDI.

Human rights groups pledged I. Gambar to use all available reserves to defend the party's interests in the issue of its headquarters.

ADALAT TO RUN FOR BY-ELECTIONS TO PARLIAMENT

Chairman of the Adalat party Ilyas Ismayilov met with political secretary of the British embassy in Baku Fern Horin Thursday, as the parties exchanged views on the political developments ongoing in Azerbaijan and the situation with human rights. I. Ismayilov said Adalat members are under arrest, the party won't be registered "groundlessly" and the authorities "intervene in the activities of opposition parties". He said the party was willing to run for the by-elections to the Azeri parliament in April, pointing out that the authorities don't create conditions for a fair and democratic election. Adalat stands for the OSCE to conduct the coming parliamentary elections, he said.

PRO-AZERBAIJAN FORCES HOLD RALLY

The Union of Pro-Azerbaijan Forces held a sanctioned rally in front of the Galaba cinema Saturday, as thousands of people showed up. The protesters chanted "Intellectuals awake", "Death to Armenian aggressors", "Secure Azerbaijan's territorial integrity", "Strengthen the national army", "No Azerbaijan without Garabagh", etc.

Co-chair of the Azerbaijan Democratic Party Araz Alizadeh told the masses that more protesters could come should police let people from the regions into Baku.

Speakers elaborated on social problems and the facts that over 2 million Azeris have left the country in pursuit of jobs and Garabagh war veterans either languish in prisons or live under abysmal conditions.

The protesters adopted a resolution of 9 articles and called on the authorities to honor them. "In case the authorities refuse to execute the requirements, they should resign and presidential elections should be held under the auspices of the UNO", the document reads.

ADP WOMEN IRON-MINDED

Secretary of the woman organization of the Azerbaijan Democratic Party Solmaz Alasgarova told a news conference Thursday that the authorities had sanctioned to hold a rally in front of the Galaba cinema, throwing out all proposed venues for the protest action. S. Alasgarova said she had applied to the Mayoral Office for any location other than Galaba. She said ADP woman members would conduct an unsanctioned rally from the monument to the Emancipated Woman to Fuzuli Square and all responsibility would rest on the authorities. On Saturday, the ADP woman attempted to hold a rally-march from the monument to the Emancipated Woman to Fuzuli square after refusing the Mayor's Office proposal to rally in front of the Galaba Cinema. But, a group of unidentified women appeared in the venue of the rally and started insulting those who came to protest with obscenities and attempted to fight them. In response to the mottoes of ADP women members "Ouster", the other group chanted "Long live Heidar Aliyev".

Police dispelled both groups, ending the unsanctioned rally.

OPPOSITION AMBIGUOUS ABOUT POLITICAL INMATES

Democratic Congress-1 believes that Azerbaijan should honor its commitments to the Council of Europe, chairman of the congress Isa Gambar has told journalists.

Azerbaijan should have thought carefully when accepting the commitment on the release of political prisoners. The country could be ousted from the CE should it fail to put the commitments to work, he said. "Democratic Congress-1 is very seriously concerned about the issue and recommends the authorities to be so, as deceiving the CE is a political illiteracy", I. Gambar said.

Meanwhile, the PFPA reform wing in Democratic Congress-2 thinks it unreasonable to free all the convicts that are listed as political prisoners by the CE. This especially attaches to those who earlier attended to activities against the statehood and territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and separatism.