Azerbaijan has never been a safe place for LGBTQ people. When I lived there, you could face discrimination and brutality in your daily life. You would get rejections from jobs, and be humiliated by family, neighbours, classmates. LGBTQ people would never go to the police for help – the police would not protect you. But that’s gone a step further with the recent police crackdowns in Baku.
I left Azerbaijan in 2014 for the US. I came as a student and decided not to go back to a country where I’m not able to be myself. That became clear to me in the wake of Isa Shakhmarli’s death. After he killed himself using the rainbow flag, wider society became even more brutal about LGBTQ people. It was the first time there had been a public debate about the issues and it showed how dangerous people’s ignorance could be.
Lately, things have become even worse; now you are not allowed to be seen in public places. Police raids started on 15 September when several transsexual sex workers were arrested by the police – who then sought out their friends. Those under arrest have been threatened and blackmailed by the police to make them provide information about others.
Many gay and transsexual people have been arrested in their apartments. Living collectively, with five or six people to a flat, has made it easier for the police to find them. Detainees have reported that they have been beaten and humiliated, with police even shaving some people’s heads. This is all against Azerbaijani legislation.
The statements coming from Azerbaijan’s ministry of internal affairs do not seem to reflect the reality. It has made three statements in the past week – first to say that there had been no raids on LGBTQ people; second, saying that some of those arrested had been tested for HIV and the results were shocking; and finally saying that 16 of the detainees tested HIV-positive.
However, the Aids Centre in Baku released a statement saying they had not been involved in the process – and said that there was no request from the police to test anyone, and they had not even compared the names of detainees with the ones on their record. They have also revealed the statistics about HIV-positive people in Baku. There are 5,376 HIV-positive people registered at the centre. Among that number, 48.7% caught the virus as a result of injecting drugs, 40.3% after heterosexual sex – and a mere 1.9% after homosexual sex.
I have been told that the police are now profiling people in every public place. There have been several incidents in which police have approached people and detained them without giving any reason. They may be released after a few hours upon paying a bribe – or they may be detained for up to 30 days. Human rights lawyers in Baku have taken on 33 cases already. All of these people were arrested on charges of resisting the police and disobeying them. None have been arrested because of prostitution.
The whole Azerbaijani LGBTQ community is now living in fear. Some have left the country – and they don’t know how long it will be before they can go home. Without international support to put pressure on Azerbaijan’s government to stop this vile treatment, all we can do is help those who feel unsafe to leave the country.
In the UK the Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international suicide helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org