Azerbaijan - Articoli

Behind Aliyev style reforms: business as usual

01/10/2019 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

In Azerbaijan, a pro-government website published a report evaluating the reforms introduced by President Aliyev at the beginning of the year. However, a careful analysis shows that behind the facade of reforms the country continues as usual: corruption and violation of human rights


Azerbaijan, the Huseynov’s case

15/01/2019 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

A blogger’s plea for justice shakes the world, but not official Baku


Arzu Abdullayeva: Peace agent between Azerbaijan and Armenia

02/01/2019 -  Gular MehdizadeSabina AbubekirovaAnonymous

Arzu Abdullayeva has faced threats, insults and even violent demonstrations because of his peace activism between Armenia and Azerbaijan. But she never gave up


Azerbaijan: journalists and human rights activists left defenceless

11/10/2018 -  Dorothy Achmer

In Azerbaijan, several lawyers have been suspended from the Bar association over the last few months. All of them were striving to ensure the right to defence for journalists and human rights activists


Azerbaijan: white gold, black labour

28/08/2018 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

After the global decline in oil prices, Azerbaijan is trying to differentiate its economy betting on cotton industry. In Soviet times the “white gold” was one of the biggest exports of Azerbaijan, today is caracterized by huge violations of workers' rights


Armenia and Azerbaijan: Garden of Peace between the opponents

02/07/2018 -  Armine Avetisyan Yerevan

Cultivating the land in villages on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border is very dangerous. Nevertheless there are those who go on, dreaming of peace


The working elderly — why in Azerbaijan ‘nobody wants to retire’

15/06/2018 -  Kamran Mahmudov

Elderly people in Azerbaijan are often seen working well beyond the age of retirement, often in hard physical jobs. The government has tried to celebrate this, claiming that no one wants to retire in Azerbaijan, but others point out that low state pensions give many no other choice


Azerbaijan, killing a republic

08/06/2018 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

In May Azerbaijan celebrated the 100th anniversary of its republic. Little is left of the democratic principles that inspired the founding fathers


Azerbaijan: the kingdom of Aliyev secures fourth season

16/04/2018 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Nothing but a show, with dramatic results for the future of Azerbaijan. A commentary on the recent presidential elections


No laws, just shame: Sexual harassment in the South Caucasus

06/04/2018 -  Armine AvetisyanNika MusaviDato Parulava

Inappropriate comments and propositions from strangers, groping, and worse are something women in the Caucasus are often forced to contend with, and while the problems seem universal, protections under the law are also universally lacking


What's behind Azerbaijan’s snap elections

15/02/2018 -  Arzu GeybullayevaTamara Grigoryeva

The presidential elections were scheduled for next October, but surprisingly the head of state has called them on April 11. Why did president Aliyev take and sign this decision?


Muižnieks asks for details on the LGBT situation in Azerbaijan

17/10/2017 -  Nils Muižnieks

LGBT community members in Azerbaijan have been subjected to arbitrary arrests in the last weeks. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Nils Muižnieks, has addressed the matter


Azerbaijan: LGBT persecution on the rise

03/10/2017 -  Durna Safarova

They stopped them in the streets, at their workplace, in their apartments. Tens of members of the LGBT community were arrested in Azerbaijan. Their fault? The regime does not tolerate diversity


Azerbaijan: Confronting Mental Illness

25/09/2017 -  Nurlan Baba-zade

An encounter with an 34-year-old Azeri man with a mental disorder. His experience, his daily life and the difficulties met by people who, in the Caucasian country, suffer from mental illness


Azerbaijan: the silent crackdown in the Land of Fire

06/09/2017 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

The already long list of arrests of those who are not aligned with the Baku government continues. The last one to pay was Mehan Aliyev, director of the Turan press agency


Azerbaijan and Europe

07/07/2017 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

The Azerbaijani regime should harbor no illusions. It will never achieve a strategic partnership agreement with the EU like those obtained by the US, Canada, China, Japan, Brazil and others


Azerbaijan: a 21st century dynasty

01/03/2017 -  Arzu Geybullaeva

President Ilham Aliyev has recently appointed his wife to the position of vice-president of the country, confirming that Azerbaijan is, slowly but steadily, turning from a democracy into a monarchy


Azerbaijan: autocracy, before and after the referendum

29/09/2016 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

The referendum held on September 26 in Azerbaijan confirmed the adoption of 29 constitutional amendments, strengthening the power of the ruling elite


Azerbaijan: Aliyev-style referendum

31/08/2016 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Attempts to strengthen the regime in Azerbaijan: a forthcoming referendum aims to prolong the presidential term and to lower to 18 years the minimum age to be elected President


The South Caucasus at Rio Olympic Games

02/08/2016 -  Natalia Kawana

Things seem to be going well for Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia at the 2016 Summer Olympics – scheduled to start on 5 August, in Rio de Janeiro. At least when it comes to the overall numbers of participating athletes


Opera in Azerbaijan

29/07/2016 -  Natalia Kawana

Azerbaijan can hardly be considered a typical opera destination. But the country has a lot to offer opera lovers: performances of Western and Eastern European masterpieces, its own compositions, which are a unique mixture of musical traditions, and excellent singers


F1 and the limits of public diplomacy

21/07/2016 -  Chiara Loda

The economic crisis and the cold international attendance at the Baku European Games are some possible explanations for the partial change of diplomatic strategy of Azerbaijan


The hostages of Ilham Aliyev

13/05/2016 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Some political prisoners have been released by the Azerbaijani authorities in the past few months. But many are still behind bars, held as hostages


The letter of Aylisli

28/04/2016 -  Akram Aylisli

Azeri writer Akram Aylisli, banned from taking part to a Literary Festival in Italy, writes to President Ilham Aliyev presenting the meaning of his most recent work, Stone Dreams


Akram Aylisli’s Dream

07/04/2016 -  Akram Aylisli

A few days ago, the writer Akram Aylisli was due to participate in the Incontri di Civiltà literary festival in Venice. Azerbaijani authorities prevented him from attending. This is the speech he could not read


Akram Aylisli, a writer under restrictions

31/03/2016 -  Simone Zoppellaro

Azerbaijani writer Akram Aylisli was expected to take part to the “Incroci di civiltà” International literature festival today in Venice, but the Baku authorities blocked him at the airport. Our interview


Azerbaijan, the Nowruz amnesty

23/03/2016 -  Simone Zoppellaro

In Azerbaijan and in the rest of Europe there was satisfaction for the amnesty that allowed 15 journalists, opposition politicians and human rights activists, to return to freedom. In the Caucasian country, however, there are still too many political prisoners


Azerbaijan: Mission Nardaran Challenge

02/02/2016 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

Protests in Nardaran, a majority conservative Shia village in the outskirts of Baku, indicate a growing discontent for the country's difficult social and economic conditions


Azerbaijan, the black list

14/01/2016 -  Andrea Oskari Rossini

The Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Italy has published a long list of journalists, banning them from the country


Lights, Camera, Action - Welcome to Azerbaijan’s show elections

30/10/2015 -  Arzu Geybullayeva

With the lack of interest and competition, disbelief, and long tradition of manipulated election results it is unlikely November 1st elections in Azerbaijan will bring much change. More likely, they will only reconfirm the projections of results for these elections - one party rule on both presidential and parliamentary levels.