STRASBOURG–Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev found himself in a pickle on Tuesday, when before and after his speech at the summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe, he was dogged by questions from PACE leadership and delegates about Azerbaijan’s abysmal human rights record and rampant violations of press and speech freedoms in his country.
Aliyev chose his tried and true approach: lashing out at his critics and calling them “liars.”
The day began with Azerbaijanis living in Europe staged a protest at the PACE meeting hall. Having covered their mouths with black tape, the group was protesting Aliyev’s continued insisting that his government was protecting the rights of its citizens; that there were no political prisoners in Azerbaijan; and that there was freedom of speech and expression in his country. “All fundamental freedoms are respected in Azerbaijan,” said the Azerbaijani leader.
Aside from the protesters, Aliyev was confronted by PACE President Anne Brasseur who said that no matter how much a country develops economically, it can never be successful if democratic norms and principles are not respected.
The PACE president stressed that while Azerbaijan was a signatory to some 57 conventions since becoming a member of the Council of Europe, it has failed to implement specific provisions dealing with human rights, guaranteeing freedom of speech, press and assembly.
During the question and answer session following Aliyev’s remarks, PACE deputy from Ireland, Michael McNamara brought up the issue of 39 political prisoners in Azerbaijan and stressed that the recent presidential elections were fraudulent.
An angry Aliyev shot back by asserting that there were no political prisoners in his country.
“If you are making such statements,” Aliyev said, “that’s your biased approach toward our country. You have tried to insult our country on several occasions. Azerbaijan will not fall victim to such provocations.”
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev exchanged verbal punches with deputies at today’s PACE plenary session in Strasbourg who raised concerns about human rights violations in Azerbaijan.
PACE deputy from the UK, Paul Flynn, was also not spared Aliyev’s wrath. When Flynn questioned the Azerbaijani leader about state attacks against journalists in Azerbaijan, Aliyev angrily retorted: “You are lying.”
Aliyev and Karabakh
A presentation by Aliyev at an international arena would not be complete without a discussion of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the Azerbaijani leader’s continued insistence that the current republic of Armenia was actually part of historic Azerbaijan and that Yerevan was granted to the Armenians in the early 20th Century.
He went on to assert that Armenia had not complied with several international agreements–an ironic statement on Aliyev’s part since he was earlier chided by the PACE president for having ignored critical conventions of the Council of Europe, of which, incidentally, Azerbaijan currently holds the chairmanship.
Prior to the beginning of the PACE session, the Azerbaijani delegation aimed to disqualify the Armenain delegation by proposing a resolution, which claimed that Armenians were aggressors in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. That motion was not even brought to the floor for a vote.
apparently its not a crime to shoot Armenian soldiers and civilians on the border and incite racial hatred against Armenians.
Why shouldn’t he? After all the East and the West shamelessly are licking his boots to gain his favours.
Before any other “talks” with this man, we should insist that he see a psychiatrist. Apparently the aromatic rings produced by the oil refineries in Baku had rendered him crazy. The problem is no one in Europe or Armenia is bold enough to put a stop to this bully.
All those “pragmatic” people who support the view that aXerbaijan might be a suitable ally for the west… Well, congrats. I really wish you knew the fake “nation” a little bit better.
Axerbaijani Sultan has a mental disorder, and needs to be checked out by Cesar Milan!
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev knows he must retain power at all costs or he and his family will be imprisoned for the crimes they have committed. This person lie’s constantly about everything. I honestly have never heard a truthful comment attributed to him. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdoğan was cut from the same cloth.
It is increasingly clear that Aliyev is a total clown. It is time PACE countries to stop appeasing this despot and punish Azerbaijan by recognizing Artsakh.
WHAT A SHAME THAT ARMENIA IS SURROUNDED BY BARBARIC, UNCIVILISED LOW IQ ,
GOOD FOR NOTHING BACKWARD PEOPLE AND THEY HAVE TO BE THE TOPIC OF OUR NEWS
REAL NEIGHBORS FRO M HELL
GOD BLESS ARMENIA LETS THE LIGHT AND FORCE BE WITH ARMENIA
I hope that one day the European organizations will kick this Bozo and his government out.
Not only he is chronic liar he is stupid!
For every people a well deserved and representative leadership 🙂 Leave it up to a fake country, with a falsified identity and a history…a cancer of an identity, a lie from its foundation to stand before others and accuse them so easily of lying. Neither the countless millions they spend on PR firms, nor the billions they spend on weapons will save them from one day being force to drink their fucking oil. That we have not yet overrun scum like this off the face of the earth says much about our own ineptitude.