23 January 2015, 04:54
George Soros urges Azerbaijani authorities to ease pressure on civil society
George Soros, the founder and the chairman of the "Open Society" Foundation, has called on President Ilham Aliev to ease the pressure on civil society and to remove barriers to activities of registered charities.
The statement released by the Foundation on January 22 expressed deep concern about the "strengthening campaign against the civil society in Azerbaijan, including keeping several prominent rights defenders in custody."
"Over the past few months, the government of Azerbaijan has arrested dozens of political activists, rights defenders, journalists, bloggers and advocates on false charges of committing crimes, ranging from embezzlement to treason. Some of them have been given long prison terms," says the statement, received by the "Caucasian Knot".
The statement mentions the persecuted rights defenders, namely: Leyla Yunus, Rasul Jafarov, Intigam Aliev, and the investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova.
Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.
Author: Faik Medzhid Source: CK correspondent
