In Baku, protesters demand to stop corruption and release political prisoners

At the today's rally, the Azerbaijani opposition has accused the country's authorities of corruption and human rights violations. The protesters demanded to investigate the facts of corruption, punish the guilty persons and release political prisoners.

Today, in Baku, more than 1000 people went out to an anti-corruption rally under the slogan "No Robbery", organized by the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF). According to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, about 1000-1500 people took part in the action.

Ali Kerimli, Chairman of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), claimed that "the authorities in every way tried to disrupt the action."

"Ilham Gusein, the leader of our rallies, was arrested before the action of September 23. He and a number of other activists are still being kept in custody ... However, the participation of such a large number of people at the rally proves the fact that people are not intimidated," Ali Kerimli has said.

He has noted that the international community should take measures to "curb corruption" in Azerbaijan. "We expect the complete investigation into the scandal with laundering of 3 billion US dollars from Azerbaijan," Ali Kerimli has emphasized.

Jamil Gasanli, Chairman of the National Council of Democratic Forces (NCDF), also spoke about the corruption in Azerbaijan among top-ranking officials.

"All the country's profitable industries are concentrated in the hands of one family," Jamil Gasanli has noted.

According to him, the next protest action is scheduled for October 28.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.