Opposition protests mount in Baku

The protests have become a daily event in the run-up to the Oct. 15 presidential elections amid tension in this key Caucasus country over who is in charge.

Ailing President Haydar Aliyev has not been seen in public since July 8 and is currently hospitalized in the Cleveland Clinic in the United States. His supporters insist that he is improving and still plans to seek re-election.

But Aliyev’s son, Ilham, is also on the ballot and on Monday, Ilham Aliyev was named prime minister, the country’s second-highest post. Under Azerbaijani laws, Ilham would become acting president if his father were to die.

Opposition parties gathered outside the Constitutional Court on Friday to criticize Ilham Aliyev’s appointment and to call for clear information about Aliev’s health, in particular whether he was alert when he asked the Azerbaijani parliament to name his son prime minister.

The Cleveland Clinic treating President Aliyev said Thursday that the ailing leader responded favorably to initial treatment for congestive heart failure and Azeri officials in Washington denied reports that his health situation was worse than reported.

Aliyev, 80, also has some kidney problems but no neurological problems, the elite US clinic in Ohio said in a written statemen. He was resting comfortably in the clinic’s department of cardiovascular medicine.

His long absence has fuelled reports in Turkey and Azerbaijan that he was already dead.

"The president is all right," said Tahir Taghi-Zadeh, political counselor at the Azerbaijan embassy in Washington, D.C. He said the president would undergo a checkup in Cleveland.

But Ilham Aliyev told Azerbaijani television Thursday that his father needed treatment in connection with seven ribs he broke when he fell during a speech in April.

"The president’s broken ribs affect his general physical state," said Ilham Aliyev.

Aliyev had ignored doctors’ orders in April by going back to work almost immediately after the fall, which exacerbated his condition, his son said.

Ilham Aliyev also said that his ailing father’s health condition was stable, saying the 80-year-old leader did not need surgery.

"His treatment is continuing, and everything is fine," he told Azerbaijani television.

The Cleveland Clinic, on the other hand, refused to comment, referring all calls to the Azerbaijan Embassy in Washington.

Despite earlier statements by Azerbaijani officials that the president would be returning to his country, doctors told The Associated Press that his condition was serious and that they warned him against flying home, saying he was too frail.

Aliyev has led Azerbaijan since being elected president in 1993. He has suffered a series of health problems during his term in office.

He had a heart attack in 1987 and underwent bypass surgery at the Cleveland clinic in 1999, underwent prostate surgery there in February 2002 and a hernia operation earlier this year.

Isa Gambar, leader of the opposition party Musavat, on Thursday showed journalists an appeal that Musavat and some smaller opposition groups had sent to Gulhane, demanding an official statement about Aliyev’s health.

Gambar said concerns about whether Aliyev was alive had cast doubt on the legality of Ilham Aliyev’s appointment. According to Azerbaijani law, the prime minister is chosen by the president and confirmed by parliament.

Gambar’s deputy, Rauf Arifoglu, joined a hunger strike begun a day earlier by 10 opposition activists to protest Ilham Aliyev’s appointment.

Meanwhile, police used truncheons to break up a protest by about 30 people demanding former parliament speaker Rasul Guliyev be allowed to run in Oct. 15 presidential elections. Guliyev has been banned from running because he lives in the United States, to which he fled to avoid charges of stealing property which he contends are politically motivated.

Organizers said 16 people were injured in the clash and 16 people were briefly detained.

The controversy over Ilham Aliyev’s appointment has raised concerns of widespread unrest in the run-up to the presidential elections, but presidential aide Ali Hasanov said Thursday that "the authorities are completely controlling and directing the country and we don’t think there are any forces capable of ruining this stability."

Both Aliyevs are on the ballot for October, but Ilham Aliyev says he registered simply to have more means to assist in his father’s campaign.

Foreign Minister Vilyat Guliyev said Thursday that at least 1,000 international observers would be present for the election.