Avtandil Mammadov at a protest in May calling for the release of Afgan Mukhtarli. (Mari Nikuradze / OC Media)
An Azerbaijani activist being sought by Azerbaijan via Interpol has been arrested in Georgia, where he was seeking asylum. Azerbaijan has accused him of fraud while his lawyer said he was being persecuted for his criticism of the government. [Read more…]
Sanubar and her daughter. (Gulnur Kazimova / OC Media)
Despite tightening laws against early marriages in Georgia, among the country’s ethnic Azerbaijani population, they remain common. The results of such marriages are often tragic, with young girls leaving education, becoming victims of domestic violence, or in some cases, dying. [Read more…]
Marneuli İctimai Kitabxanası (Rahim Şaliyev /OC Media)
Azərbaycan, Gürcüstan kitabxanalarına ermənilər əleyhinə nifrət danışığı olan kitablar göndərməkdədir. Kitabxanaların özləri bu mövzuda problem görməsə də, Gürcüstan azəriləri bunun etnik problemlərin ortaya çıxmasına səbəb ola biləcəyindən qorxur.
Marneuli Public Library (Rahim Shaliyev /OC Media)
Azerbaijan has been supplying Georgian libraries with books containing hate speech against Armenians. While the libraries don’t see them as a problem, some Azerbaijani Georgians fear they might help plant the seeds of ethnic tension.
Mayor Temur Abazov and MP Azer Suleimanov (Facebook)
The mayor of Marneuli, in southern Georgia, and an MP have been charged with inhumane and degrading treatment and assault respectively. Mayor Temur Abazov and MP Azer Suleimanov were charged on Wednesday after videos were posted on Facebook appearing to show a man being forced to wipe his own urine on his face and apologise for insulting ruling party officials. [Read more…]
Police at the crime scene (GPB)
A local leader of the ruling Georgian Dream party and four others have been shot near their local party headquarters in south-east Georgia. [Read more…]
Young Azerbaijani women in national dresses wait for the festival to begin (Sulkhan Bordzikashvili/ OC Media)
Celebrations for Nowruz — the coming of spring — were held in the southern Georgian town of Marneuli, where the majority of the population are ethnic Azerbaijanis. [Read more…]
In the Azeri community, a red ribbon on the door means that someone in this house was recently married. (Lala Aliyeva/ Chai-Khana)
Child marriages are commonplace in Georgia’s Azerbaijani communities. Despite tough new laws prohibiting the practice, young girls continue to have their right to education denied to them and their futures decided between their families and potential suitors. [Read more…]
Shalala Amirjanova (Nino Baidauri/Women of Georgia)
Women in Georgia very often lack a voice of their own. Their opinions, feelings, dreams, aspirations, and achievements can be conveyed by others, often the men around them. The Women in Georgia project gives a voice to these women, allowing them to tell their own stories — in their own words. The project collected 150 distinct stories from women throughout the country. Over the next few months, OC Media will bring you a selection of these stories, translated into English and Russian. Below, in her own words, is Shalala’s story.
