Your trusted source

American NGO IREX announced the termination of its activities in Azerbaijan and the closure of its offices in Baku, the Caucasian Knot reported.

According to the article, in order to begin the process of de-registration, in accordance with the local regulations, IREX, after the expiration of contracts has not signed new ones.

The statement of the organization stresses that its activities in Azerbaijan have started since 1998. The NGO has established close cooperation with various governmental agencies, as well as commercial and non-profit agencies to support the development of education, the media and the Internet.

“IREX hopes that its activities in Azerbaijan will be objectively assessed by the people and the government, and baseless and defamatory information disseminated through different media about the organization will not be taken seriously, and the started investigation will be completed in the frameworks of the rule of law," reads the statement of IREX.

The article notes that in recent months a number of Azerbaijani web resources spread messages for supporting IREX structures involved in anti-governmental activities. In its turn, the Azerbaijani representation IREX on August 6 denied these allegations, saying that all the activities have been carried out and still are being operating under the laws of Azerbaijan, in close coordination and cooperation with the government commission on international humanitarian assistance.

Coordinator of the Alliance for protecting the political freedoms Samir Kazimly regarded the termination of IREX as displacement of foreign NGOs from Azerbaijan.

"There is a purposeful process of the displacement of Western donors and NGOs from Azerbaijan. Earlier, the US National Democratic Institute ceased its activities. According to my information, there is more than two dozen local associations and a number of Western NGOs against which investigation is stared. All this is a blow to civil society in Azerbaijan, and ultimately on the prospects for democracy in Azerbaijan ", told Samir Kazimly to the Caucasian Knot.

Caucasian Knot reminds that in the beginning of August at the request of the Prosecutor General of Azerbaijan the bank accounts of six local and one international non-profit organization were arrested: "Media Rights Institute," "Society for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights", "Assistance to Free Economy", "Resource Centre for Democracy and Human Rights", "Association of Lawyers of Azerbaijan", "Center for National and International Studies," and the Society of legal education, as well as the office of the American organization IREX. On September 5 the representatives of the General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan raided the Baku office of IREX, and seized all the computers and other equipment, as well as the documents. Currently under there are two local NGOs under investigation receiving support from IREX - Institute for Reporters Freedom and Safety (IRFS) and Media Rights Institute, is actively engaged in the protection of the rights of journalists and freedom of expression in Azerbaijan. Their bank accounts are also frozen. In same time, equipment and documents of IRFS have been withdrawn after a search of the office of the organization on August 8. On August 11 IRFS office was sealed.