Two police officers killed in clashes with protestors in Ganca

Tension remains high in Azerbaijan's second city, Ganca, after incidents last evening (10 July) during which hundreds of protestors clashed with police in front of the government building in the city centre. In the clashes two police officers were klilled and forty protestors arrested. The protests followed an incident last week when a local resident tried to kill the main government representative in the city, Elmar Valiyev.

Yesterday's incidents started when a group of around 200 protestors gathered in the city centre, allegedly armed with knives and sharp objects, and calling for the release of a man who is in detention accused of the attempted murder of the Elmar Valiyev. Police and Ministry of Interior troops reacted quickly, breaking up the protests. Scenes of the protest were broadcast live on social media by some local residents. It later transpired that during the clashes two police colonels were killed. The authorities are saying that two persons suspected of the murders managed to escape. They have issued pictures and details of the two men and have asked the public for information on their whereabouts. The main opposition parties in Azerbaijan - Musavat and Popular Front Party, have distanced themselves from the protests, according to the BBC Azerbaijani service who interviewed some of their leaders.

Commonspace.eu political editor said in a comment that "the incidents in Ganca constitute a serious challenge to the government of president Ilham Aliyev. The protestors seem to be religiously inspired, with some support in the wider community. Ganca is traditionally a stronghold of Shia Islam, the main religious tradition in Azerbaijan, however signs of religious radicalism in Ganca have so far been under the surface. The government has to move cautiously in order not to create a backlash within the wider community. But the audacious murder of two senior police officers in the centre of the second largest city is a serious challenege to the government. The incidents in Ganca also need to be seen in the wider political context in the country. The government has curtailed the space for criticism or political activism, but Azerbaijan remains an open country with citizens able to access most social media. At the moment the government is fighting on three fronts - internally it is trying to clean some of the most acute cases of corruption within its own ranks that it belatedly has recognised as being a serious impediment to it its work; it is in direct confrontation with the secular opposition who accuse it of totalitarianism and abuse of power; and it is in confrontation with radical religious groups who abhor the secular nature of the Azerbaijani leadership, and all it represents. As the events in Ganca in the last days have shown, the latter challenge may prove the most difficult".

source: commonspace.eu

photo: scenes from the portests in Ganca on 10 July 2018 (picture courtesy of APA news agency, Baku).

 

 

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
Dozens participate in new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue process as societies prepare for the signing of historic peace agreement

Dozens participate in new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue process as societies prepare for the signing of historic peace agreement

The governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan have recently agreed the text of a historic peace agreement that ends years of animosity and warfare. The agreement is expected to be signed soon. LINKS Europe, which has a long history of engagement with the process of peace in the region, recently launched a new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue format in the framework of the European Union's EU4Peace initiative. In the last two weeks dozens of Armenians and Azerbaijanis, including academics, students, civil society activists, journalists and other professionals, many of them young, were involved. The work is organised in five thematic groups focusing on peace and security, connectivity, environment, governance and gender and equality and in phase 2 of the project, which has just ended, around fifty participants took part in in-person and online meetings, and more than twenty others were involved indirectly. The Chairpersons of the five thematic groups met in Vilnius, 3-6 July to launch the third phase of the program. The five thematic groups are now working on separate reports, which are expected to be finished in November and presented to the two governments and other stakeholders. The reports will outline a vision, up to 2040.

Popular

Editor's choice
News
Dozens participate in new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue process as societies prepare for the signing of historic peace agreement

Dozens participate in new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue process as societies prepare for the signing of historic peace agreement

The governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan have recently agreed the text of a historic peace agreement that ends years of animosity and warfare. The agreement is expected to be signed soon. LINKS Europe, which has a long history of engagement with the process of peace in the region, recently launched a new Armenia-Azerbaijan dialogue format in the framework of the European Union's EU4Peace initiative. In the last two weeks dozens of Armenians and Azerbaijanis, including academics, students, civil society activists, journalists and other professionals, many of them young, were involved. The work is organised in five thematic groups focusing on peace and security, connectivity, environment, governance and gender and equality and in phase 2 of the project, which has just ended, around fifty participants took part in in-person and online meetings, and more than twenty others were involved indirectly. The Chairpersons of the five thematic groups met in Vilnius, 3-6 July to launch the third phase of the program. The five thematic groups are now working on separate reports, which are expected to be finished in November and presented to the two governments and other stakeholders. The reports will outline a vision, up to 2040.