Day: December 13, 2024

Anthony Blinken: “She returned knowing that she might be arrested on arrival.”

The U.S. Department of State awarded Sevinj Vagifgizi, the editor-in-chief of AbzasMedia, with the “Champions of Combating Corruption” award.

Sevinj is known for her work on corruption investigations, and she is currently imprisoned.

In his speech, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken highlighted Sevinj’s devotion over the past decade in exposing government abuses.

“She is also the one awardee who is not with us this afternoon. In November 2023, Sevinj flew home from an overseas country amid a crackdown on Azerbaijani independent media. She returned knowing that she might be arrested on arrival. She was. Now, more than a year later, she remains in detention. Prior to her arrest Sevinj wrote and I quote, ‘I don’t feel fear anymore. I know what they can do. It does not stop me. It is more important to be useful to the people. People need us’”

-Antony Blinken

Blinken also expressed gratitude to the ten anti-corruption champions for their courage. He said it was an honor to partner with them in this fight. The Department of State created the “Champions of Combating Corruption” award in 2021 to recognize individuals who have made significant progress in fighting corruption and to show the U.S. government’s solidarity with them.

This year’s award recipients include journalists, human rights defenders, judges, and even government officials who have facilitated major institutional changes. Other awardees include Jorge Mora Cortes from Colombia, Matrika Daxal from Nepal, Altin Dumani from Albania, Srbukhy Galyan from Armenia, Carl Irani from Lebanon, Marr Nyang from Gambia, Javier Enrique Caraballo Salazar from Panama, Didar Smagulov from Kazakhstan, and Jimmy Spyre Ssentongo from Uganda. Blinken emphasized that each recipient made a difficult decision to help their own citizens and all the people around the world, and their dedication, along with those of others, we are in a better place now.

AbzasMedia, the organization behind Sevinj’s work, has also faced significant challenges. Six of its employees, including the general manager Ulvi Hasanlı, assistant Muhammad Kekalov, editor Sevinj Vagifgiz, reporters Nargiz Absalamova and Elnara Gasimova, and investigative journalist Hafız Babali, have been arrested. These individuals are facing charges of smuggling, with some detained since November 2023.

On May 31, 2024, journalist and economist Farid Mehralizade from the “Azadlig” radio station was arrested, and a search was conducted at his home. He was accused under Article 206.3.2 of the Penal Code, which concerns smuggling by a group of individuals who had previously made secret agreements. The Khatai District Court decided to detain him for security reasons. On the same day, AbzasMedia issued a statement declaring that Mehralizade had no connection to the media organization.

Following this, each of the detainees in the AbzasMedia case was faced with additional serious charges related to financial matters. Since November 2023, nearly 20 journalists and social activists have been arrested in Azerbaijan on smuggling charges. None of these individuals have been charged based on their professional activities or political affiliations.

According to local human rights organizations, there are currently around 300 political prisoners in Azerbaijani prisons. Authorities typically assert that no one has been detained solely for political reasons related to their professional activities. However, both local and international human rights organizations believe these arrests are politically motivated, and they are calling for the release of the detainees and the withdrawal of the charges against them.

The post Sevinj Vagifgizi honored as anti-corruption champion appeared first on MEYDAN.TV.

Fashion, culture, and responsibility are three key words that became the foundation of the recently concluded 17th season of Azerbaijan Fashion Week, Azernews reports.

Vice-President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation Leyla Aliyeva has visited a school located near the capital city of Kigali, Rwanda as part of the foundation’s project “Development of Education and Culture in African Countries,” Azernews reports.

U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), delivered a call to action on the Senate floor Thursday, urging the U.S. government to take “immediate steps in response” to Georgia’s escalating political crisis. Senator Shaheen underscored the critical nature of the next weeks for Georgia, emphasizing that “bipartisan and bicameral support” exists for the administration to act decisively.

Shaheen, expressing deep frustration with the current state of U.S. engagement, stated, “We are failing to meet this moment and answer this call. We have failed to respond in a meaningful way that would help change the calculus of Georgia Dream’s leadership. They are paying no price for their actions as they defy the will of the people and take pages from Putin’s authoritarian playbook.” She further criticized the U.S. Treasury Department for failing to impose sanctions on any Georgian officials involved in the recent violations against democratic principles, noting the widespread concern over the lack of accountability.

The senator’s remarks come in the aftermath of Georgia’s October 26 rigged elections, which were followed by the government’s November 28 announcement that the country would halt its EU integration efforts until 2028. Shaheen condemned this move, calling it a victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin and a clear indication of the Kremlin’s influence over Georgian politics. “This is a move that pleased Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin, reinforcing his influence over the politics and policy of Georgia,” Shaheen said.

The senator also highlighted ongoing protests in Georgia, pointing to mass violations committed by the ruling Georgian Dream party, including illegal arrests, excessive force against peaceful demonstrators, and raids on opposition offices and homes. Shaheen was particularly concerned about the targeting of activists, opposition figures, and ordinary voters. “There’s evidence that the ruling party, Georgian Dream, specifically targeted activists, opposition figures, and ordinary voters. Democracies do not act like that,” she remarked.

In her address, Shaheen also praised Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili for standing in solidarity with the Georgian people, urging the government to halt the violence. However, she also warned that “a new president and commander-in-chief, one who stands with Georgian Dream and supports the Kremlin, could dramatically escalate an already volatile situation.”

The U.S. senators stressed the long-standing partnership between the United States and Georgia, which has been grounded in shared democratic values since the early 1990s. “We’ve partnered with the Georgian people, successive Georgian governments to build a military and a society capable of cementing the country’s transatlantic future,” Shaheen noted. She further emphasized Georgia’s contributions to U.S.-led military efforts, citing the country’s support in the Iraq War in 2003 and its deployment of soldiers to Afghanistan in 2004.

In closing, Senator Shaheen appealed to the U.S. government to take immediate and decisive action to condemn the current political situation in Georgia, urging that now is the time for the U.S. to stand by its long-time partner. “Georgia stood by the United States, and it’s time now for us to stand by them,” she concluded.

The U.S. State Department on December 12 implemented a Visa Restriction Policy, prohibiting the issuance of visas to individuals responsible for or complicit in undermining democracy in Georgia. This decision impacts approximately twenty individuals, including government ministers, parliamentarians, law enforcement and security officials, and private citizens. Several other countries, including Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Ukraine, have also imposed similar sanctions.

In response to the situation, calls for urgent international action are growing. On December 13, Georgian think tanks and the research community sent a joint letter to Kaja Kallas, the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, as well as to the foreign ministers of EU member states. The letter urges the European Union to take decisive action to address Georgia’s democratic backsliding under the Georgian Dream (GD) government.

Also Read:

• 12/12/2024 – UK Ambassador: We are Shocked by Law Enforcement Violence
• 12/12/2024 – MEPs in Tbilisi Meet President, Opposition, CSOs
• 09/12/2024 – U.S. Embassy: All Responsible for Violence Must be Held Accountable
• 07/12/2024 – Defending the Future: Understanding Georgia’s Fall Protests
• 28/11/2024 – GD Aborts EU Accession

The Central Bank of Azerbaijan has released information on money transfers between Azerbaijan and the United States, Azernews reports.

Vice President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Leyla Aliyeva, met with President of the Republic of Rwanda Paul Kagame in Kigali on December 13. The meeting highlighted opportunities for enhancing cooperation in education, culture, and international projects, Azernews reports.

On December 12, The Social Justice Center (SJC) has issued a statement, criticizing the draft amendments to the Public Service Law of Georgia, proposed by Georgian Dream party, calling them a violation of labor rights and a potential tool that can be used for political persecution in the public sector. SJC argues that the amendments would facilitate the dismissal of critical public servants under the guise of reorganization and establish full Georgian Dream party control at all levels of the public sector.

SJC stated that the chronology of events, public statements by high-ranking government officials, and the content of the proposed amendments indicate that the planned changes to the Law on Public Service aim, on the one hand, “to facilitate the dismissal of critical public servants under the guise of reorganization and, on the other hand, to establish full partisan control over all levels of the public sector”. It argues that the amendments coincide with protests from public servants against the suspension of Georgia’s EU integration process. GD leaders including Irakli Kobakhidze and Kakha Kaladze, have called the protests an attempt to “attempt to overthrow state institutions through sabotage” and said it’s a “self-cleansing process.” They indicated the expected retaliatory steps from the government “within the framework of the Constitution and the law.” 

The watchdog’s statement highlights some of the most controversial aspects of the bill. In particular, the SJC notes that the draft law expands the grounds for reorganization. “Specifically, the draft law proposed by “Georgian Dream Party allows reorganization to be declared based on minimal changes, such as adding new functions to each employee within a structural unit or modifying existing functions,” says the JSC. Currently, the assignment of a new function not only to a specific employee, but even to a structural unit of a public institution cannot be considered a basis for reorganization

SJC also states that the draft law simplifies dismissals during reorganizations. The watchdog say “it is extremely alarming” that, with the initiated changes, during the reorganization of an institution, the dismissal of an official is automatic. In the event of dismissal of employees due to reorganization and the announcement of a new competition, “the head of the institution is granted discretionary authority to decide the type of competition to be held—open, closed, or internal—for selecting public servants at all levels.”

Another key aspect, according to SJC is the elimination of the option to transfer public servants to equivalent positions in case of reduction in staff due to the reorganization. The amendments remove the possibility of transferring dismissed employees to equivalent or lower-ranking positions within the public sector, further reducing job security for public servants that are facing reorganization. In addition, the duration of reorganization process is set to be shortened from three to two months.

Furthermore, as SJC says the draft law also restricts the restoration of rights for violated public servants. The proposed amendments introduce a troubling provision regarding the restoration of rights for unlawfully dismissed public servants. If a court rules that a public servant has been unlawfully dismissed or wrongly selected in a competition, as per the court’s ruling, the draft law stipulates that the individual will not be reinstated to their position. Instead, they would only receive compensation equivalent to three months’ salary.

SJC also notes that the the draft law violates the International Labor Organization’s Convention N158. That convention establishes that the termination of employment can be justified by legitimate reasons such as economic, technological, or structural changes within an organization. However, the amendments proposed by the Georgian government go beyond these criteria, allowing dismissals based on arbitrary modifications to individual employees’ roles, such as the addition or modification of functions.

The organization assesses that the planned amendments to the Georgian Law on Public Service will alarmingly worsen the labor rights of civil servants. It notes that the amendments coincide with the large-scale protests of civil servants, with which they distanced themselves from the ruling party’s decision to suspend Georgia’s EU accession process and demonstrate that the real goal of the amendments is to demonstratively punish critical civil servants and completely subjugate the civil service to the Georgian Dream party.

Other human rights organizations, including the Georgian Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) have also criticized the draft amendments, highlighting concerns over the erosion of public servants’ rights, the potential for politically motivated dismissals, and violations of international labor standards.

Also Read:

• 12/12/2024 – GYLA Criticize New Legislative Amendments, Warns of Democratic Backslide

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry has announced that the consular department of Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Iran has officially resumed its activities as of December 15, 2024, Azernews reports.

Azerbaijani member of the parliament Nigar Arpadarai suggested introducing a temporary quota to boost the number of women in the diplomatic service during discussions on the new draft law “On Diplomatic Service,” Azernews reports.

1. Georgia crisis deepens as government set to name far-right president  VOA Asia
2. Georgian protests enter third week as new far-right president set to be appointed  FRANCE 24 English
3. Violent protests in Georgia highlight battle over the country’s future. Here’s why it matters.  CBS News
4. Opinion | The Streets of My Country Are Full of Fury  The New York Times
5. The Bitter Standoff Over Georgia’s Next President  Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty
6. Georgia’s Pro-Europe Protesters Are Facing Down Police Violence  Foreign Policy
7. Hundreds of arrests and mysterious beatings as Georgia cracks down on pro-EU protests  Reuters
8. Georgia has set a precedent that could undermine EU enlargement  Al Jazeera English
9. Georgian opposition declares non-recognition of presidential election  Ukrainska Pravda