'Mr Pashinyan, please confirm that I did not cooperate with Armenian intelligence' – letter from Azerbaijani activist
Azerbaijani activist addresses Pashinyan
Political researcher, anti-war activist, and doctoral candidate at Charles University in Prague, Bahruz Samadov — who is accused of treason in Azerbaijan — has addressed a letter to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
On 23 August 2024, Baku’s Sabail District Court ordered a four-month pre-trial detention for Samedov, who is being prosecuted under Article 274 (high treason) of Azerbaijan’s Criminal Code.
Bahruz Samadov is a graduate of the International Relations Department at Central European University and a PhD candidate in political science at Charles University. The young political scientist, drawing on post-structuralist and psychoanalytic theories, researches hegemony and political discourse in Azerbaijan.
Bahruz Samadov’s letter:
“Mr Prime Minister, I ask you to remain committed to the peace agenda, to do everything possible to prevent ceasefire violations along the Armenia–Azerbaijan border, and to take practical steps toward enabling peaceful coexistence in the future.
For lasting peace, both sides must build values rooted in a shared future and common geography. At the heart of these values must be the unconditional rejection of violence.
I also ask you to make an official and substantiated statement confirming that I have had no cooperation with Armenian intelligence services. I hope that communication between the two sides will lead to my swift release and put an end to my ‘anti-war imprisonment.’
For peace to become a reality, both sides must abandon all irredentist claims and instead focus on models of coexistence and neighbourly relations in the post-conflict period.
I conclude my letter with a stanza from Charles Baudelaire’s poem The Peace Pipe:
The reeds are many and the rock is thick ;
Each one of you may make from them a pipe. No more wars.
No more blood ! Henceforth live as brothers.
And ail, united, smoke the Peace Pipe !
Bahruz Samedov is also a contributor to OC Media and the Baku Research Institute.
He is known for his critical articles about the Azerbaijani government and has actively participated in peacebuilding projects implemented by various international organizations.
Charles University staff issued a statement in response to Bahruz Samedov’s arrest.
The statement noted that the academic community at Charles University is following the news of the arrest of Social Sciences PhD candidate Bahruz Samedov in Baku with deep concern:
“The Faculty of Social Sciences, together with the university leadership, is working intensively to gather information from reliable sources.
Charles University has also contacted the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs to request cooperation,” the statement reads.
