A group of activists of the Democratic Movement of Azerbaijan held a protest rally in Baku on May 14 against threats of growing violence against public figures and journalists. The action was held under the slogan ‘We do not want a mafia state’.
Most of the organizers of the protest were arrested before the start of the action.
The participants claimed that violence against public figures and journalists had recently become more frequent in Azerbaijan, and that these crimes went unpunished.
“We think that these attacks are not the last, if the society does not raise its voice of protest, there will be more serious crimes, including political murders. We call on the state to put an end to these horrible crimes, to find and punish the guilty,” the message of the protesters reads.
The activists were going to march to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to read the text of the message. However, the police did not allow it, and the protest lasted only 30 minutes.
About 30 people were arrested during the operation, another 13 citizens were taken out of Baku and left on the road.
