Narmin Shahmarzade

4 Posts

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Narmin is a psychologist and feminist activist. She has been deeply involved in social struggles in Azerbaijan. She was one of the co-organisers of the 8 March 2021 International Women’s Day protes

Women attending a funeral of a soldier who died in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War.

Azerbaijan

Opinion | The silent victims of war

by Narmin Shahmarzade

•6 min read

In post-war Azerbaijan, the wives and widows of soldiers continue to be revered by society with an admiration that lasts only as long as they remain unquestioning, undemanding, and at peace with the traumas they and their families have experienced as a result of war. When we talk about wars, we often think of weapons, bombs, and dead soldiers — widowed women and orphaned children are mere afterthoughts. It is often perceived that men are the ones who suffer most in war; they, after all, sacr

Azerbaijan

Calls for answers over death of Azerbaijani activist Bayram Mammadov in Istanbul

by Narmin Shahmarzade

•3 min read

Azerbaijani and Turkish activists are demanding answers over the death in Istanbul of former ‘prisoner of conscience’ Bayram Mammadov. Mammadov went missing on 2 May and on 4 May, Turkish police informed friends that he had drowned. Mammadov, 27, was a prominent government critic who served three years in prison on drug charges that rights groups say were fabricated. He was arrested after defacing a statue of former president Heydar Aliyev with the words ‘Happy Slave Day’ a day before the bi

Azerbaijan

Opinion | The war did not save us

by Narmin Shahmarzade

•3 min read

Some Azerbaijanis believed that the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War would psychologically revitalise the country and would lift years-long feelings of oppression, and create a new civic pride and courage. But instead, all that has happened is that violence both real and symbolic has become ever more deeply ingrained in the country. For many years in Azerbaijan, whenever you would criticise the government, despite the specifics of the social or economic question you often get the response, especia

Azerbaijan

Opinion | In Azerbaijan sex is a weapon

by Narmin Shahmarzade

•5 min read

Narmin Shahmarzadeh was targeted by hackers who stole personal information and intimate materials, which they then published online. Now, exclusively for OC Media, she writes why she thinks the Azerbaijani authorities are behind the hack, and why sexual blackmail is becoming a more common tactic in Azerbaijan. My Facebook profile was hacked on 9 March, one day after I participated in the International Women’s Day protest in Baku. Intimate conversations, photos, and voice recordings belonging

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