Azerbaijan President Warns Riot Leaders

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BH Unregistered User (10/19/03 5:03 am)	Azerbaijan President Warns Riot Leaders Europe - AP Azerbaijan President Warns Riot Leaders Sat Oct 18, 8:06 AM ET By BURT HERMAN, Associated Press Writer BAKU, Azerbaijan - President-elect Ilham Aliev blamed the opposition for riots after his election to succeed his ailing 80-year-old father and said Saturday its leaders could face legal action. AP Photo Sat Oct 18, 5:31 AM ET Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ilham Aliev during an Independence Day ceremony at Martyrs' Lane in Baku, Azerbaijan, Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003. Aliev, son of ailing Azerbaijan President Geidar Aliev, won the election this week to replace his father in power in this oil-rich former Soviet republic. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) In his first public appearance since Wednesday's vote, Aliev said the unrest that tore through Baku gave the impression that disorder reigns in the oil-rich former Soviet republic. "All responsibility for that is carried by leadership of the Musavat party and they will answer before the law," Aliev said after laying a wreath at a memorial to victims of unrest during the Soviet collapse and fighting in the ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh. Interior Minister Ramil Usubov said about 200 people had already been arrested in the investigation of violence that broke out after polls closed Wednesday. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage spoke to Aliev Friday night and called on him to "work for reconciliation in the country" and "expressed concern about any ideas of (opposition) roundups," said U.S. Ambassador Reno Harnish. "We are urging all sides to be calm," Harnish said. "Incitement is not the right thing to do at this time, neither is excessive action." Aliev, speaking on the 12th anniversary of Azerbaijan's independence from the Soviet Union, said authorities would determine whether Musavat leader Isa Gambar shared responsibility for the clashes and should be arrested. Gambar, who came in a distant second in the vote with 12 percent, faces "condemnation of the entire Azerbaijani nation as a person who causes bloodshed," Aliev said. Aliev received nearly 80 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results. But Gambar said the unrest was set off by the regime, which he accused of falsifying the vote and launching a campaign of "total repression." "We will continue with fight on a peaceful path," he said by telephone from his home, where he been since Thursday. He said some of his bodyguards had been arrested. Already Friday, officials arrested two of Gambar's deputies and Igbal Agazade — leader of the opposition party Umid, or Hope. All 96 lawmakers present at an extraordinary session of parliament Friday had voted to lift Agazade's immunity as a parliament deputy. Another two opposition officials from parties supporting Gambar — Ihrar party leader Vagif Hajiev and Etimad Asadov, former head of a group for the disabled from Nagorno-Karabakh — have also been arrested, an official in the Prosecutor General's office said Saturday on condition of anonymity. Aliev said he had called his father President Geidar Aliev — who hasn't been seen since he was hospitalized July 8 and withdrew from the election this month for health reasons — after the election to discuss the results. Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe condemned the vote as failing to meet international norms, citing violations including ballot-stuff and falsified counting. Aliev acknowledged Saturday that there had been what he called minor violations in the election process but said the vote was "democratic."
BH Unregistered User (10/19/03 5:08 am)	RE: Azerbaijan President Warns Riot Leaders Sat Oct 18, 5:10 AM ET The Azerbaijani flag waves as a soldier stands in an honor guard during Independence Day ceremonies at Martys' Lane in Baku, Azerbaijan on Saturday, Oct. 18, 2003. Ilham Aliev, son of ailing Azerbaijan President Geidar Aliev, won an election this week to replace his father in power in this oil-rich former Soviet republic. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) ----- Fri Oct 17,10:13 AM ET Azeri servicemen train in central Baku, October 17, 2003. Riot police using tear gas and dogs clashed with thousands of opposition supporters on Thursday after the son of Azerbaijan's ailing leader Haydar Aliyev won a presidential election strongly criticized by the OSCE democracy watchdog. Photo by David Mdzinarishvili/Reuters ----- Thu Oct 16, 5:20 PM ET Opposition protesters shout waving an Azerbaijan flag during riots in Baku, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2003, with the government office in the background. Police battled opposition protesters during riots in the capital of Azerbaijan on Thursday after Ilham Aliev was declared the winner in the presidential election to succeed his father in a vote condemned by Western observers for widespread electoral violations. (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov) ----- Thu Oct 16,12:03 PM ET A woman looks on while passing by the soldiers' line in downtown Baku, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2003. Police battled opposition protesters during riots in the capital of Azerbaijan on Thursday after Ilham Aliev was declared the winner in the presidential election to succeed his father in a vote condemned by Western observers for widespread electoral violations. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) ----- Thu Oct 16,11:43 AM ET Government forces clash with opposition protesters during riots in downtown Baku, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2003. Police battled opposition protesters during riots in the capital of Azerbaijan on Thursday after Ilham Aliev was declared the winner in the presidential election to succeed his father in a vote condemned by Western observers for widespread electoral violations. (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov)

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