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Azerbaijan must immediately halt the police use of violence to suppress freedom of expression, Amnesty International said after two separate peaceful protests were broken up by police in the capital city Baku on Monday, amnesty international said.

Local activists told Amnesty International that opposition party members were specifically targeted at rallies in Baku’s Sabir Garden area and in front of the city authorities’ offices.

Independent video footage from the scene shows police roughing up demonstrators as they are being dragged away.

Around 300 protesters took part in the unsanctioned gatherings which called for the release of political prisoners before Azerbaijan hosts the Eurovision Song Contest later this month.

“The glitz and glamour of the Eurovision are only weeks away, but the international media attention the contest will bring seems to be no deterrent for Baku’s police, who continue to use brute force to put down peaceful protests,” said John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia Programme Director.