Freedoms Are Under Increasing Attack In Azerbaijan

What You Need To Know:

✔️ Khadija Ismayilova was sentenced to 7.5 years in jail for reporting on corruption in Azerbaijan;

✔️ Azerbaijan is oil rich but the people are poor;

-✔️ Khadija's work focused on uncovering the money laundering and excess of President Ilham Aliyev;

✔️ "In the past 18 months, Azerbaijan's most prominent journalists have been imprisoned."

In Azerbaijan, an oil rich but poverty stricken nation, President Ilham Aliyev has been cracking down on journalists. He recently ordered the unjust arrest of one of the country’s best respected journalists, Khadija Ismayilova. Her work had exposed many of the corrupt Presidents shady dealings which prompted him to have her locked up for 7 years.

She's beloved amongst the poor of the population for exposing the crimes of the countries leaders and his allies, says Arzu Geybulla. Now, the President has sent a dangerous signal that anyone investigating him will have their freedoms removed.

All of this is happening in a country desperately trying to ingratiate itself with Europe, by hosting the Euro games and a European Grand Prix next year. The Western response so far has been tepid, with smatterings of concern from European leaders.

Arzu Geybulla, foreign correspondent with Radio Free Liberty spoke with Hromadske International Sunday Show co-hosts Ian Bateson and Nataliya Gumenyuk on September 6th, 2015.