Azerbaijan: Persecution of Jehowah Witnesses

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Date: Wed, 8 Sep 1999 17:52:59 +0300 (EET DST)
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Subject: Azerbaijan: Persecution of Jehowah Witnesses

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Original sender: Eldar Zeynalov <[email protected]>

Azerbaijan: Persecution of Jehowah Witnesses


THE NEXT PERSECUTION OF THE JEHOWAH WITNESSES
 
Baku, 7 September 1999 (HRCA)
 
On September 6, the group of representatives of Jehowah Witnesses (JW)
community of Azerbaijan appealed to the Human Rights Center of
Azerbaijan stating that they were discharged from their positions in
the Azerbaijan Gas Refining Factory because of their belief.
 
In late August, the local TV Station "Space" demonstrated the film
about JW where was quoted some cutted statements of JWs as well was
added some materials about another sectarian groups presented as JWs. 
According to the JWs, the national security officer of Qaradaq
regional office of MNS directly participated in the preparation of
this TV interview asking the JWs about the leaders of community,
financial sources of their work, etc. In general, the broadcasted TV
programme perversed the believes of JWs and propagated the hate to
them. For example, there were the wrong statements of the "Space"
journalists about financial donation of $100 to $300 given to the
Moslems who became JW, about mental and physical problems of the
members of JW community and their families, about lack of their
respect  of Constitution, etc.
 
The result of that was immediate. The Director of the Azerbaijan Gas
Refining Factory ("Azerbaycan Qaz E'mali Zavodu") Huseynbala Fazil
oglu Miralamov gathered the workers, read some letter of the Ministry
of National Security about several JWs who works for the factory and
deals with the illegal propaganda for their non-registered
organization. Then  the videotape of the mentioned TV programme was
showed, and  "the judgement" in the Soviet style was started.
 
All the participants noted that have no negative comments on the
professional work of JWs, but accused them that:
- they do not respect the Constitution and national banner,
- their propaganda is illegal because the religious community is not
registered,
- the men JWs refuse from the military service,
- they are funded by America and are dangerous for the national
security,
- they are working for Armenian aggressors,
- they are people's enemies and ready for the murder and diversions,
- they are not dealing with the appropriate education of their
children,
- they do not participate in the holiday ceremonies, etc.
 
The atmosphere of hate was so strong that Musa Mahmudov, the father of
one JW women Aybaniz Mahmudova, stood up, publicly refused from his
daughter, and ordered her not to come in his house.
 
Finally, the factory director stated that he is satisfied by the
meeting because it confirms his belief that JWs violate the
legislation of Azerbaijan. After that, he demanded from the JWs to
refuse in written mode from their religion and warned that otherwise
they would be discharged from their work positions. Entire meeting was
videotyped by the factory worker for possible broadcasting the
"response" of factory administration by the TV.
 
At the next day, the JWs were not permitted to enter the factory, and
on September 3, they were provided a copy of the Order #100/k dated of
September 1, 1999 and signed by director H.F.Miralamov and
vice-chairman of the trade union committee G.Sh.Aliyev. According to
the article 70 "ch" of the Code of Laws on Labour, there were
discharged from the work positions:
- Makarenko Milena Georgiyevna, engineer,
- Mammedova Arzu Qasham qizi, typist,
- Mahmudova Aybaniz Musa qizi, typist,
- Nasreddinova Galina Gatyatulovna, operator of technological unit,
- Pritulyak Olga Ivanovna, operator of technological unit,
- Hadjiqaribova Sonya Bilalovna, operator of boiler unit.
 
According to the mentioned article, the meeting of the labour
collective can decide to discharge the worker if he/she is dealing
with the administrative crimes or criminal activities at the working
place. Usually, it is necessary preliminarily to approve that the
worker is a criminal by the court decision which is already in the
legal force. In the described case, the procedure was roughly
violated. The evidences of the administrative crime (i.e., the
religious activity of the non-registered religious community) were
only oral statements of the trade union members. There is also
unconfirmed information that after the workers' meeting, the factory
director forces the workers to write the statement that they were
forced by JWs to learn the Holy Bible.
 
The local Jehowah Witnesses community has presented the appropriate
documentation set for official registration by Ministry of Justice
already in 1996 and till now, there is no response. In 1997, the
unformal leader of the community, Nikolai Usenko was hinted by the
high-level official of MJ, that the community can be registered for a
bribe of $2,000, but immediately was arrested when tried to do that.
After that, the National TV campaign against the JWs stating that they
are totalitarian and even terrorist organization. In 1998, he got the
suspend sentence, was liberated from detention and permitted to
emigrate to Russia. In May 1998, two JW missionaries with Russian
citizenship, Veniamin Pribytkov and Oleg Saveliev were forcedly
deported from Azerbaijan. In April 1999, one more missionary, Serghey
Shabanov, and in July 1999, Andrey Avdienko also were deported at the
basis of the Law "About Religious Freedom" prohibiting the foreigners
to deal with religious propaganda. In 1998-1999, the number of JW
meetings were dispersed, and dozens of JWs got the administrative
punishment, usually, fines. However, there was not registered the
facts of dismissal of the JWs from their work.
 
HRCA concerned by the case of hate speeches broadcasted by
pro-governmental TV and of direct involvement of the Ministry of
National Security in the process of the persecution of religious
minority.

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