The system of injustice has reminded me today that I live only in conditional freedom. For a very long time I could not really understand what conditional freedom really means. The Ministry of Justice has officially informed me today that I am not allowed to use educational opportunites abroad. I have no right to leave and then come back to Azerbaijan, I have no right to go to John Smith Programme to UK, to go to study Global Civil Society at LSE in London (Chevening Schollarship). It took me some time to find out that I have right to know that I have no rights. This is what the system wants me and others to think about my rights and indirectly about their rights.They want us to know that we have no rights. They want me to feel that I am still in jail.
So what is the way? How can we tolerate so many faces of injustice that system shows us every day. The answer is simple. We should not tolerate it at all. Every time system makes a move against us, we should make severeal moves towards humanity. Not against the system, but for humanity which actually is more dangerous for any authoritarian system and more powerful than anything you can do against the system. The act of a state against the right of one man to get knowledge, to travel and to share your experiences and knowledge is a criminal act against humanism. Our response should be even more humanism. We need to humanise such systems.
I believe that these restrictions will not restrict my basic right and very human desire to know more and to share what I know with the rest of the world. There is no power in the world that can win against those basic human desires. I can participate at all global events about freedom via skype and I will do so. I have done so. I can have a distance learning programmes while in Azerbaijan and I will do so. Nothing will make me change my beliefs. Nothing can stop me from getting information, knowledge and education. Nothinbg can stop me from sharing my knowledge, my tghoughts, my love and my hopes. I have done it in jail and I will do it in "conditional freedom".
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P.S.My lawyers and lawyers of some international organizations in Baku think that ther are no legal grounds to deprive me of my freedom to travel. We will go to court and we will win this case in Strasbourg too. Here is official letter from Ministry of Justice:
Ministry of Justice
Executive Department
Yasamal district
Baku city
To Lawyer Elton Guliyev
Dear Mr. Guliyev,
In response to your inquiry sent to Yasamal district’s Executive Department, we inform that – by the decision of Sabail District Court from 11.11.2009 - Abdullayev Emin Pasha oglu was found guilty according to articles 127.2.3. and 221.2.1. of the Criminal Code of Azerbajan Republic and, thereby, sentenced to 2 years and 6 months of imprisonment. The decision of Salyan District Court on 19.11.2010 granted Abdullayev Emin Pasha oglu with early conditional release 1 year 1 month and 20 days prior to termination of his term of imprisonment.
Due to fact that term of imprisonment for Abdullayev Emin Pasha oglu has not yet terminated, his right to exit the country is limited according to Article 1 paragraph 2 of the “Law of the Azerbaijan republic about exit from the country, entry into the country, and about passports”.
Respectfully,
Zaur Abdullayev,
Head of Executive Department,
Baku city, Yasamal district
Junior Counselor of Justice
