Azeri ex-president Aliyev’s statue removed from Mexico City center

PanARMENIAN.Net - A life-size bronze statue of Azerbaijan's former president Heydar Aliyev was removed from Mexico City’s main avenue to suburbs early Saturday, January 26 morning.

In November, an advisory commission issued a recommendation to remove the statue. The rights groups said they were offended by a monument of “dictator” erected in one of the busiest areas in the city.

Azerbaijan has paid around $5 million for the renovation of part of Chapultepec Park, where the statue is was installed, and other public works.

The protesters have objected Aliyev’s statue saying that he was an authoritarian figure, who led Azerbaijan first as Communist Party boss during Soviet times and then as president from 1993 until his death in 2003.

Baku warned earlier of damage to Azerbaijan's relations with Mexico if the statue is removed, including the potential cuts to Azerbaijani investments in Mexico.