Tag Archives: Azerbaijan

Arrest of former Azerbaijani MP exposes endemic corruption

FEB. 15 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – At a secretly taped meeting in 2005, Azerbaijani MP Gular Ahmadova allegedly offered to guarantee the rector of a Baku university a seat in parliament in return for a $2m bribe.

At the time Ms Ahmadova was considered a relatively high-flying member of the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan party, the political party of the all-powerful President Ilham Aliyev.

Corruption is endemic in Azerbaijan. Transparency International ranked the country at 139 out of 174 in its 2012 Corruption Perception Index, next to Nigeria and Pakistan.

Even so, when the video of Ms Ahmadova offering a bribe was aired last year it caused a major stir and she was sacked from parliament.

Now, media have reported that police have arrested Ms Ahmadova for abuse of public office and embezzlement. This is rare in Azerbaijan and her court case will be eagerly watched.

The issue is far deeper, though. The opposition media in Azerbaijan have reported that she was operating on behalf of a more senior government official.

Ms Ahmaova’s case, many analysts suspect, is just a small insight into corruption running through Azerbaijan. On the same day as her arrest, media also reported that police had arrested two employees of the Ministry of Taxes for taking a $250,000 bribe in an unrelated case.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 124, published on Feb. 15 2013)

Azerbaijan arrests opposition leaders

FEB. 4 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – The authorities in Azerbaijan arrested two opposition leaders and accused them of orchestrating clashes between protesters and police in a provincial town last month. Human rights groups have said that the Azerbaijani authorities are using the clashes as an excuse to clampdown on their opponents.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 123, published on Feb. 8 2013)

Azerbaijan launches satellite

FEB. 7 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan launched its first communications satellite, media reported. The satellite, launched from French Guiana, potentially allows Azerbaijani to diversify away from its energy industry and branch out into communications and broadcasting for the South Caucasus, Central Asia and North Africa.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 123, published on Feb. 8 2013)

Azerbaijan arrests opposition

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 123, published on Feb. 8 2013)

Azerbaijan launches satellite

FEB. 4 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan launched its first communications satellite, media reported. The satellite, launched from French Guiana, potentially allows Azerbaijani to diversify away from its energy industry and branch out into communications and broadcasting for the South Caucasus, Central Asia and North Africa.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 123, published on Feb. 8 2013)

Azerbaijan approves India’s purchase

JAN. 31 2013 (The Conway Bulletin) – Azerbaijan’s government approved the purchase by India’s state-owned energy company ONGC Videsh, of a 2.72% stake in the Azeri-Chirag- Guneshli (ACG) oil fields and a 2.36% stake in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline from the US’s Hess for $1b. Both ACG and BTC are Azerbaijani flagship projects.

ENDS