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Wednesday, 22 September 2004
PACE CALLS FOR RELEASE OF AZERBAIJANI OPPOSITION LEADERS
By empty (9/22/2004 issue of the CACI Analyst)
The latest report by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) monitoring committee for Azerbaijan calls for the immediate release of seven Azerbaijani opposition leaders currently on trial for their alleged participation in clashes in Baku on 15-16 October between police and opposition supporters in the wake of the disputed presidential election. The report, which is to be formally debated on 5 October during the PACE autumn session in Strasbourg, also calls for the release of several lower-level opposition supporters who were arrested and jailed for protesting election irregularities and falsifications. It also expresses concern over incidences of oppression and intimidation, citing the country\'s failure to release political prisoners, the eviction of opposition parties from their offices, and the dismissal of the popular and influential leader of Baku\'s Djuma Mosque.
The latest report by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) monitoring committee for Azerbaijan calls for the immediate release of seven Azerbaijani opposition leaders currently on trial for their alleged participation in clashes in Baku on 15-16 October between police and opposition supporters in the wake of the disputed presidential election. The report, which is to be formally debated on 5 October during the PACE autumn session in Strasbourg, also calls for the release of several lower-level opposition supporters who were arrested and jailed for protesting election irregularities and falsifications. It also expresses concern over incidences of oppression and intimidation, citing the country\'s failure to release political prisoners, the eviction of opposition parties from their offices, and the dismissal of the popular and influential leader of Baku\'s Djuma Mosque. (Turan)