European Parliament discusses problem of persecution of believers by totalitarian regime in Azerbaijan
In the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the meeting of the working group of the European Conservatives and Reformers on religious freedom was held, reports the "Katolik.ru."
Papal charity "Aid to the Church in Need" in its latest report on religious freedom in the current year notes that violations of religious freedom were observed in 116 out of 196 countries. In 55 countries (28%) the situation of freedom of religion has worsened. The high level of intolerance or even open persecution because of their faith are found in 20 countries, of which 14 is associated with fundamentalism and Islamic extremism: these include Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Libya, Maldives, Nigeria, Pakistan, Central African Republic, Somalia, Sudan, Syria.
In other 6 countries – Azerbaijan, Burma, China, Eritrea, North Korea, Uzbekistan – people are persecuted by the ruling there totalitarian regimes for their faith.
According to one of the authors of the paper, this report confirms that in the period under review the situation of religious freedom worldwide has deteriorated, and the desire to isolate religious communities is growing. The document shows that many rulers - politicians, religious leaders - are not going to defend freedom of religion, thereby respecting fundamental human right, as is the freedom of religion.
During the discussion, special attention was paid to the need for the introduction of international rules of law, to prevent persecution on religious grounds.
A few days ago, law enforcement agencies of Azerbaijan detained theologian Elshan Mustafaoglu. The Court chose as a preventive measure in the form of arrest for a period of four months. Mustafaoglu is kept in the jail of the Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan. According to unofficial data, Elshan Mustafaoglu is suspected of treason.
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