Tough police reaction to spontaneous protest in Baku criticized by opposition

By their actions, the policemen, who have detained 11 Baku residents during raids against quarantine violators, only stir up hatred for the authorities, and the country risks becoming a police state, activists of the Azerbaijani opposition told the "Caucasian Knot".

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on June 8, about 50 employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Azerbaijan conducted a special operation in the Yeni Yasamaly residential complex in Baku. 11 people were delivered to the police station. According to the police, the detainees were throwing various items from the balconies at the law enforcers, who were detaining quarantine violators.

The incidents in Yeni Yasamaly have shown a lack of citizens' trust in the state, Bakhtiyar Gadjiev, an activist, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

He has noted that recently the MIA bosses are trying to improve the image of the police, but incidents like the ones in Yeni Yasamaly have nullified these efforts.

"Policemen's behaviour only enhances citizens' anger. In recent days, a number of videos have been spread demonstrating inappropriate policemen's treatment of citizens. As a result, the latter are losing confidence in the police, resorting to unethical behaviour," Mr Gadjiev has stated.

In his turn, Ilgar Mamedov, the leader of the "Republican Alternative" (ReAl) Party, has treated policemen's actions as lawlessness. "The country runs the risk of becoming a police state," he told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 9, 2020 at 05:15 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.