The Guardian: life in Azerbaijan is as grim as ever

PanARMENIAN.Net - This year's host city, Baku, has had a makeover but journalists and activists say that under the surface, life is as grim as ever, an article in the Guardian says.

Azerbaijan's hosting of the Eurovision song contest has thrust the oil-rich country into the international spotlight.

The very nature of Eurovision, a kitschy pop spectacle in which competitors representing about 40 countries (of which 26 reach the final) perform a song live on television, is in stark contrast to the grim reality of life in Azerbaijan.

The government has poured millions into the capital, Baku, turning it into a sort of European capital on the Caspian, with grand, illuminated buildings, a tree-lined boardwalk, and even a fleet of London-style cabs to ferry visitors around. Yet beneath its marbled exterior, and just outside the city limits, a different vision emerges – one where journalists are routinely threatened, human rights activists pressured and protesters and bloggers who dare to challenge Aliyev put behind bars, the Guardian says.

According to Amnesty, 16 political prisoners remain behind bars in Azerbaijan. Reporters Without Borders ranks the country near the bottom of its press freedom index, noting the continuing imprisonment of five journalists and one blogger, and the unsolved murder last year of a prominent journalist, Rafig Tagi.

Aliyev has ruled Azerbaijan since 2003, inheriting the mantle from his father, Heydar Aliyev, who died months after giving up power.

The elder Aliyev has since become the subject of a state-sponsored personality cult, lending his name to museums and streets. The airport is named after him, as is an enormous new cultural centre designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid. Posters bearing his image compete with adverts for Burberry and Chanel on Baku's spotless boulevards. There are at least three statues of the late leader in Baku, and dozens around the country.

His son and daughter-in-law, along with their two daughters, have been accused by journalists and activists of ruling the country's politics and economy like a personal fiefdom. A U.S. diplomatic cable written in early 2010 and leaked by WikiLeaks compared the running of Azerbaijan to "the feudalism found in Europe during the middle ages".

The government has gone on the offensive to deny accusations of dictatorship and corruption. "Azerbaijan is not an authoritarian state – we want to prove this to the whole world," said Ali Hasanov, an aide to the president. "Is Ilham Aliyev to be blamed because he is the son of Heydar Aliyev, but got the majority of votes? Is this not democracy?"

With all television channels and most newspapers under the control of the state or members of the president's family, activists argue that it is not a democracy, comparing it to an absolute monarchy instead, The Guardian notes.

Anti-Armenian propaganda and sentiment continues to run high. During the 2009 Eurovision, several Azeris who voted for the Armenian contestant were called in for questioning for posing a "potential security threat" and being "unpatriotic". Armenia is boycotting the contest this year.

Baku city centre has been transformed into a Eurovision playground, with posters advertising the contest adorning every bus, pay phone and several of the city's new skyscrapers.Yet just outside the city centre, far from the oil wealth poured into Baku, lies a land where roads are rarely paved. In the suburb of Balakhani, just 15 miles away, dilapidated houses painted bright pink and blue stand in stark contrast with their corrugated roofs and grim surroundings. Children play in the shadows of oil pumps and black pools filled with rubbish. The sour smell of oil hangs in the air, it says.

With the Eurovision finals nearly upon them, activists find themselves anxious of the government's reaction once the spotlight on the country fades.