Investigators name chief suspect in murder of opposition editor
New York, May 4, 2005—Investigators in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, said late yesterday that a 46-year-old Georgian citizen is the chief suspect in the March 2 murder of Elmar Huseynov, founder and editor of the opposition news magazine Monitor. The National Security Ministry (MNB), which is conducting the inquiry into Huseynov’s killing, identified the suspect as…
Arrests in the murder of opposition editor met with suspicion
New York, April 8, 2005—Investigators in the capital, Baku, announced late yesterday that they had detained six suspects in the March 2 murder of Elmar Huseynov, founder and editor of the opposition weekly news magazine Monitor, according to local and international press reports.
Supreme Court rejects editor’s appeal
New York, March 31, 2005—Azerbaijan’s Supreme Court has upheld the October 2004 conviction of Rauf Arifoglu, editor-in-chief of the opposition newspaper Yeni Musavat, on charges of organizing anti-government riots, according to local and international press reports. The criminal conviction was widely considered to have been politically motivated. “The many irregularities in Rauf Arifoglu’s 2004 trial,…
After outcry, president pardons imprisoned opposition editor
New York, March 21, 2005—Facing international pressure, President Ilham Aliyev pardoned the imprisoned editor of an opposition newspaper yesterday as part of a decree ordering the release of dozens of political prisoners, according to local and international press reports. Rauf Arifoglu, editor-in-chief of Yeni Musavat, had been jailed for 17 months after his arrest during…
Attacks on the Press 2004: Europe and Central Asia Analysis
Overview by Alex Lupis Authoriatarian rulers strengthened their hold on power in many former Soviet republics in 2004. Their secretive, centralized governments aggressively suppressed all forms of independent activity, from journalism and human rights monitoring to religious activism and political opposition.
Attacks on the Press 2004: Azerbaijan
AzerbaijanThe massive protests that erupted in October 2003 over the election of President Ilham Aliyev continued to have repercussions in 2004. Following the lead of his father, Heydar, who died in December 2003, Aliyev intensified pressure on independent and opposition media and used the country’s harsh criminal and civil codes to stifle criticism.
Editor of opposition weekly gunned down
New York, March 2, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder of Elmar Huseynov, the founder and editor of the opposition weekly news magazine Monitor, who was gunned down this evening in his apartment building in the capital, Baku. Huseynov was shot several times while walking up the stairwell of his building on his…
Journalist abducted, threatened by military officers
New York, February 3, 2005—Akrep Hasanov, an Azerbaijani journalist with the independent weekly Monitor in the capital, Baku, was abducted by military officers and held in detention for five hours, Hasanov told CPJ. The journalist says he was detained in retaliation for writing an article about abuses and mismanagement in an Azerbaijani military unit. On…
AZERBAIJAN
FEBRUARY 2, 2005 Posted: February 4, 2005 Akrep Hasanov, Monitor HARASSED, THREATENED Hasanov, an Azerbaijani journalist with the independent weekly Monitor in the capital, Baku, was abducted by military officers and held in detention for five hours, Hasanov told CPJ. The journalist says he was detained in retaliation for writing an article about abuses and…