Thomas Becker
Last September, Azerbaijani forces attacked the self-governing enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, and within days all 120,000 ethnic Armenians fled their ancestral homeland, most becoming refugees in neighboring Armenia. Azerbaijan called it a voluntary exodus; Armenians viewed it as a case of expulsion, which is a war crime.
The verdict is now in: a report presented by Freedom House, an independent watchdog organization dedicated to the expansion of democracy and exposing human rights abuses, described this tragedy as a planned act of ethnic cleansing. Orchestrated under the despotic regime of Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev, this tragedy is not merely a regional issue but a profound violation of human rights that demands global action. Azerbaijan should not get away with it.
There is a direct connection between odious regimes and odious actions. Aliyev, who has ruled Azerbaijan since 2003, has systematically dismantled democratic institutions and consolidated power at home, creating a regime characterized by corruption, repression, and human rights abuses. The Aliyev regime's stranglehold on Azerbaijan is maintained through a combination of electoral fraud, suppression of dissent, and control over the media. Independent voices are silenced, political opponents are jailed, and civil society is stifled, creating an environment where power is maintained through fear and intimidation.
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