On September 26th, the daughter of IRFS correspondent to Nakhchivan Elman Abbasov was beaten at school. She sustained injuries to her face a result of the incident, the journalist told IRFS.
“ On September 25th, a conference was held in Baku to discuss socio-political situation in Nakhchivan, and we attended the conference. It is not by chance that the incident happened one day after the conference. An older schoolboy all of a sudden hit my daughter in the face and ran away. Aisha Abbasli lost consciousness and couldn’t remember who had hit her,”said Abbasov.
Ababsov also said that he has repeatedly faced this kind of pressure. In the past he and his family has faced a smear campaign, slander, and threatening phone calls. The local government’s purpose is to make him refrain from his professional activities as a journalist and human rights defender. Seeing that the pressure against him is not effective, they punished his daughter. He remained defiant, saying, “I reiterate that the government pressure will not make me stop my professional work. If similar incidents occur again, then the liability for that will lie with the authorities of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.”
Ababsov also said that he has repeatedly faced this kind of pressure. In the past he and his family has faced a smear campaign, slander, and threatening phone calls. The local government’s purpose is to make him refrain from his professional activities as a journalist and human rights defender. Seeing that the pressure against him is not effective, they punished his daughter. He remained defiant, saying, “I reiterate that the government pressure will not make me stop my professional work. If similar incidents occur again, then the liability for that will lie with the authorities of Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic.”