An Azerbaijani blogger who had spent 15 months in prison for criticising the government was granted an early release by the supreme court on Monday. Bakhtiyar Hajiyev was arrested in March 2011 after calling on social networks for an...
The landslide winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, Sweden’s Loreen, has thwarted Azerbaijan’s attempts to use the competition to whitewash its record on free speech
Police in Azerbaijan crack down on a protest in Baku ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest.
As we approach tomorrow’s Eurovision song contest in Azerbaijan, Index CEO Kirsty Hughes asks if the event will shine a light on the country’s atrocious human rights record
READ MORE: Azerbaijan facing the music thanks to Eurovision
AND: Eurovision mired in deeper controversy by further clampdown on dissent in Baku
Song contest puts focus on human rights.
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The whereabouts of two Azerbaijani writers remains unknown, after they were allegedly kidnapped in Iran. Farid Huseyn and Shahriyar Hajizade were reportedly set upon by eight men in civilian dress as their bus arrived from Tehran into Tabriz, in...
As the world turns its attention to Azerbaijan for the Eurovision Song Contest, police crack down on dissent in Baku.
Index calls on Azerbaijan government to protect human rights
A 24-year-old Azerbaijani musician who says he was tortured by police after he insulted the country’s president during a concert has fled to Germany over concerns for his safety. Jamal Ali had criticised President Ilham Aliyev and his late mother...
As the Eurovision Song Contest hits our screens next week, Index calls on the expected 125 million viewers not to ignore the human rights abuses – against journalists, artists, activists – in Azerbaijan
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An Azerbaijani activist who was sentenced to two years in prison following demonstrations in Baku last year, has been released before completing his jail term. Elnur Majidli, an opposition activist, was charged with disturbing public order after...
The government of Azerbaijan has curtailed the ability of its citizens to express dissent, expose corruption or press for respect of human rights.