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Voices For Democracy Strive To Be Heard In Azerbaijan: Washington Po

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  • Voices For Democracy Strive To Be Heard In Azerbaijan: Washington Po

    VOICES FOR DEMOCRACY STRIVE TO BE HEARD IN AZERBAIJAN: WASHINGTON POST

    Tert.am
    11:48 ~U 06.04.10

    While Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is brutally cracking down on
    the opposition and independent media and while Azerbaijani opposition
    continues its struggle for freedom, it is vital that the United States
    pursue a policy of establishing democracy in Azerbaijan rather than
    focusing on the largest nation in the South Caucasus, head of the
    opposition Azerbaijan People's Front Party and co-founder of Azadlig
    (Freedom) Political Bloc of Opposition Parties Ali Karimi writes
    in the Washington Post, adding that Aliyev has made the country his
    own property.

    "Many Americans may know my country, Azerbaijan, for its oil wealth or
    for its conflict with Armenia over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

    A March 5 article in the Post portrayed a nation whose ruling family
    appears to own $75 million worth of luxury villas in Dubai. Few of us
    in Azerbaijan were surprised by a report that President Ilham Aliyev's
    family apparently invests assets abroad. What else should be expected
    from a leader who inherited power from his father through fraudulent
    elections?" writes Karimi.

    "Aliyev's brutal crackdown on the opposition and independent media
    began with his election in October 2003. Thousands of Azeris protesting
    the transfer of power - more succession than an election - were
    arrested and beaten. As opposition supporters languished in jail,
    then-deputy US Secretary of State Richard Armitage phoned Aliyev
    to congratulate him on his 'landslide' victory. Democratic voices of
    protest were stifled by the blows of police batons. Western powers were
    eager to work with a new leader they viewed as young and progressive,"
    continues Karimi.

    Saying that he is going to seriously fight in the upcoming
    parliamentary elections, Karimi adds that the democratic opposition
    in Azerbaijan does not seek intervention or financial assistance from
    the United States.

    "What we need is the moral support of an America that stands by its
    own values," writes Karimi.

    "Our platform is simple: We intend to establish a functional democracy
    in our country.

    "Azerbaijan has a resourceful populace, and we can and must decrease
    our nation's dependence on oil. We must break the economic monopolies
    controlled by corrupt officials. Our goal is to establish a free,
    market-based economy. We want Azerbaijan to integrate into the
    Euro-Atlantic community of nations, ending its status as a satellite
    of autocratic Russia.

    "Bilateral relations have long been based on cooperation on energy,
    security and democratic development. Sadly, many Azeris see US policy
    as driven by energy interests and the global war against terrorism. To
    us, it seems that democracy gets a short shrift. We hope the Obama
    administration will make clear to Azerbaijan's leader that democratic
    reforms and human rights are a priority in US-Azeri relations ...

    Azerbaijan does not seek intervention or financial assistance from
    the United States," concludes Karimi.
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