UPDATE ON FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY IN AZERBAIJAN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 BAKU 001704

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/24/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KDEM AJ
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY IN AZERBAIJAN

REF: A. BAKU 1572


B. BAKU 1606

C. BAKU 1579

D. BAKU 1700

Classified By: AMBASSADOR ANNE E. DERSE PER 1.4(B,D)


1. (C) SUMMARY: In the year that has passed since the
November 2005 Parliamentary Elections, the GOAJ has placed
severe restrictions on the right to freedom of assembly,
which is recognized in Azerbaijani law. Since the violent
break-up of a peaceful, sanctioned opposition rally on
November 26, 2005 the GOAJ has not approved a single
application for a protest or rally with a domestic political
focus, frequently denying the applications with no valid
legal grounds, and detaining opposition activists who attempt
to hold unauthorized rallies. However, the GOAJ at the same
time has turned a blind eye to unauthorized rallies with a
focus on external issues or religious issues, allowing
illegal protests on issues ranging from the Prophet Mohammed
caricatures to the draft French law on the "Armenian
genocide."


2. (C) SUMMARY CONTINUED: Both the OSCE and the Council of
Europe have urged the GOAJ to change its existing legislation
on freedom of assembly, and the President's Advisor on
Social-Political Issues announced that a task force will
study these issues. The GOAJ is currently in dialogue with
the Council of Europe regarding potential changes to this
legislation. While legal changes will help, political will is
required to change the current restrictions on freedom of
assembly. Allowing Azerbaijan's citizens to exercise their
constitutional right to freedom of assembly is a critical
component in Azerbaijan's democratic process and is essential
for this country's long-term stability. END SUMMARY

LEGAL FRAMEWORK
--------------


3. (C) Article 49 of the Azerbaijani Constitution stipulates
that citizens have the right "upon notification of
corresponding government bodies in advance, to peaceful
unarmed gatherings, meetings, demonstrations, rallies, street
processions, and pickets with others." Azerbaijani law
upholds and more clearly defines this right. In practice,
however, the GOAJ has varied between severely restricting
this right and prohibiting it altogether. In the aftermath of
protests following the October 2003 Presidential Elections
until a Presidential decree was issued on May 11, 2005, the
GOAJ did not allow any public assembly. Due largely to
intense pressure by the international community to create the
environment necessary for free and fair parliamentary
elections, President Aliyev restored the right to freedom of
assembly in a decree on May 11, 2005. However, most observers
regarded the decree as a partial restoration, as the GOAJ
limited the areas authorized for public assembly to a handful
of locations outside the city center and required protesters
to obtain advance permission from the Baku Mayor's Office.
The opposition Azadliq bloc challenged this policy by holding
a series of small, unsanctioned rallies in the city center
that resulted in clashes with police. The period of partial
restoration came to a halt on November 26, 2006, when the
Azerbaijani police used force to disperse a peaceful,
sanctioned opposition rally of approximately 7,000
participants.


4. (C) The Baku Mayor's Office has not approved a single
protest or rally application since the November 26, 2005
rally. The Popular Front Party and Musavat - both opposition
parties - reported that they have followed the appropriate
channels to apply to hold rallies, and that each instance was
denied for reasons such as "The President's Office is already
looking into this matter, so there is no need to hold a rally
on this topic." In the past two months, the opposition
Azerbaijan National Independence Party (ANIP) and the
independent Yox youth movement have received denials more
ambiguously worded, in which the Mayor's Office stated only
"It is not advisable to hold such a rally." In addition to
these instances, virtually every week the press carries
reports of parties planning protests and rallies, for which
the GOAJ reportedly denies authorization.

PROTESTS ON INTERNAL POLITICS FACE OUTRIGHT DENIALS
-------------- --------------


5. (C) GOAJ restrictions on freedom of assembly have
attracted more attention over the last two months, beginning
when the opposition Musavat party sought permission to hold a
September 23 protest on human rights, freedom of assembly,
and the "criminalization of society." In a response letter
sent the day before the planned rally, the Mayor's Office
denied the application once more on the basis of political

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content, stating that the GOAJ is already engaged on these
issues, "both in the domestic and international arenas."
Musavat did not attempt to hold an unsanctioned rally, and is
appealing the Mayor's decision through the proper legal
channels. The pro-GOAJ Muasir (Modern) Musavat party also
applied to hold a rally on an unspecified topic at the same
time and location as the Musavat protest, and although Muasir
Musavat never announced what the Mayor's Office response had
been, the party did not follow through with its protest.


6. (C) After the Musavat protest was denied, the Yox youth
movement - an independent movement that is not linked to any
party, although it is a member of the mostly opposition Youth
Coalition - applied to hold a rally to protest the media
freedom situation, corruption, and abuse of power in
Azerbaijan. The Mayor's Office denied the protest, but Yox
planned to move forward anyhow, although Yox's leader, Ali
Ismayilov, said that the movement's members would behave
strictly in a peaceful manner. However, during the evening
and early morning prior to the planned protest, Ismayilov was
detained twice, interrogated and threatened, and released one
hour after the start of the would-be protest (see ref a).
Since Ismayilov had time to contact his brother after the
initial detention, members of the movement had been warned
not to gather at the designated spot unless Ismayilov was
released before the protest's scheduled start. As a result,
the protest did not happen.


7. (C) Opposition Azadliq bloc has attempted to carry out
four unsanctioned protests in reaction to the GOAJ State
Committee for Property's decision to evict the opposition
newspaper Azadliq from its building (see ref b). The first
protest, held on November 2 in front of a subway station,
drew approximately 50 participants and resulted in the
detention of 17. The second protest, held on November 6 in
front of the State Committee for Property building, drew
approximately 30 protesters. The Institute for Reporter
Freedom and Safety (IRFS) reported that 20 participants were
detained and forced into buses driven around for an hour
before being released. IRFS also reported that one protester,
human rights activist Emin Huseynov, was beaten and "thrown
onto the pavement" by unidentified men in civilian clothes.
The third protest, held on November 15 in front of the State
Committee for Property building, drew about 30 protesters.
Huseynov said that although to his knowledge no one was
detained, police were rough with several journalists, who
were wearing vests clearly indicating that they were press.
The fourth protest was held on November 16 in front of a
subway station, and drew approximately 80 participants.
Poloff witnessed five detentions, although there may have
been more, and rough - but not violent - police treatment of
protesters. According to press reports, two of these
detainees received three-day sentences for unclear reasons.

EXTERNAL ISSUES VERSUS INTERNAL POLITICS
--------------


8. (C) While the GOAJ has not allowed any protests or rallies
since November 26, 2005, it has taken a decidedly different
approach to demonstrations focused on external politics
rather than internal policies. Earlier this year, although
not officially approved, the GOAJ turned a blind eye to
protests over the publication of the Prophet Mohammed
caricature, as well as protests over a caricature printed in
an Iranian newspaper negatively portraying ethnic
Azerbaijanis. Over the past few months, opposition party ANIP
has conducted a number of small protests (approximately 5-15
participants) in front of the Iranian Embassy regarding the
treatment of ethnic Azerbaijanis living in Iran. Secretary
General of ANIP Fuad Mukhtarov told Poloff that the police
generally allow protesters to voice their concerns before
detaining them, after which they are released a few hours
later.


9. (C) The French National Assembly's October 12 decision to
criminalize denial of the Armenian "genocide" (see ref c)
sparked a heated reaction from the Azerbaijani public,
including a string of small protests in front of the French
Embassy. The French DCM estimated that for about a week
following the publication of the decision, every day there
were one to two protests staged, with approximately 10-12
participants in each. He said that these protests were
clearly orchestrated in advance; noting that the local police
posted in front of the Embassy alerted Embassy drivers before
each protest occurred. The groups responsible for these
protests - the Karabakh Liberal Organization (KLO),the Gray
Wolf party, and the veterans organization "Our Azerbaijan" -
did not request permission from the Baku Mayor's Office, as
stipulated by Azerbaijani law, and therefore these protests
were not officially sanctioned. However, according to the
French DCM, the police did not detain any of the protesters,
with the exception of one group of six KLO protesters who

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were detained after throwing eggs at the Embassy.

THE CASE OF NARDARAN
--------------


10. (C) In Nardaran, a village located 25 kilometers north of
Baku that is known for its religious conservatism and
independent streak, freedom of assembly is handled quite
differently than in the rest of the country. Residents of
Nardaran have staged small, illegal protests throughout the
year on issues ranging from the Prophet Mohammed caricature
to the Israeli-Hizballah conflict. More recently, in reaction
to an article in a little-known Azerbaijani newspaper that
the religious community believes "insulted the Prophet
Mohammed," a November 10 protest was held in Nardaran (see
ref d). The protest drew approximately 100 participants, who
called for the author's death by beheading. According to
human rights activist Novella Jafarova, the police did not
interfere with the protest and did not detain any protesters.

DESIGNATED ASSEMBLY LOCATIONS
--------------


11. (C) On October 29, the Baku Mayor's Office released a
list of designated locations for demonstrations, still
requiring five days notice of events, including specifying
the time, location, and the number of participants. The list
includes seven locations, none of which is close to the
desired high-profile locations for assembly in Baku. Driving
to any of these locations would take between 30 minutes and
an hour. The publication of these locations drew immediate
reaction from the opposition parties. Popular Front Party
Deputy Chair Fuad Mustafayev told the press that these
locations would suffice for local gatherings, but not for
protests on events that pertained to the entire country.
Musavat Deputy Chair Arif Hajili said that locations should
have been designated nationwide, not just in the capital.
Azerbaijan Democratic Party Deputy Chair Taliyat Aliyev
concluded that the Mayor's Office must have designated these
locations under pressure from the international community,
but that the real issue is the need to lift limitations on
the right to freedom of assembly.

CHANGES TO THE LAW?
--------------


12. (C) The GOAJ is currently in dialogue with the Council of
Europe (CoE) Venice Commission regarding possible changes to
Azerbaijan's law on freedom of assembly, in accordance with
Azerbaijan's legal commitment with the CoE to bring the law
into conformity with European standards. In addition,
Azerbaijan has a commitment with the OSCE to ensure that any
restrictions on the right to freedom of assembly are
consistent with international standards. According to a July
2006 OSCE report, there are three major problems with
Azerbaijan's current law. First, international standards hold
that laws should presume in favor of holding assemblies.
Among other problems, the legal requirement to request
permission from the Baku Mayor's Office to hold an assembly
does not mesh with international standards of restricting the
exercise of freedom of assembly only for legitimate national
security or public safety reasons. The second discrepancy
lies with the state's duty to protect citizens in exercising
their right to freely assemble, both through police ensuring
security - in which dispersal should be a last resort - and
in facilitating an assembly. Azerbaijani law does not call
for the state or the police to actively protect protesters.
Finally, regarding the principle of judicial review of
decisions that restrict or prohibit assemblies, the current
law outlines an "insufficient timeline" and "fails to
adequately address liability." The OSCE presented these
concerns to the GOAJ in a September 19 closed-door
discussion, after which the President's Advisor on
Social-Political Issues Ali Hasanov told the press that a
joint task force would be established.


COMMENT
--------------


13. (C) GOAJ restrictions on freedom of assembly have gained
increasing attention over recent weeks, as journalists and
political parties have unsuccessfully sought permission to
protest media restrictions (septel). In our view, legal
changes - while important - will not solve the problem on
their own. Political will is required. The ability to
exercise the right to freedom of assembly is a critical
component of Azerbaijan's democratic process. The GOAJ
clearly recognizes the political value in allowing some
protests to go forward, as it has turned a blind eye to
protests on foreign policy issues that also serve as a useful
valve for potentially hot-button issues. The GOAJ has the

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political room to allow domestically focused protests with
little risk to its own standing or stability. In the
long-run, free exercise of citizens' right to assemble
peacefully will help the GOAJ better navigate the stresses
brought about by rapid growth. It is in the GOAJ's own
interest to resolve this problem now. We will stress this
point at all levels here and it should be reinforced in
contacts with officials in Washington.
DERSE