“GEGHARD”
SCIENTIFIC ANALYTICAL
FOUNDATION
2024
2024
One of the causes of suicides in Azerbaijan is the protest against the violation of democratic freedoms and the lack of justice in the courts. 'Since they are not allowed to protest democratically, people resort to desperate and demonstrative measures,' said lawyer Namizad Safarov.
Azerbaijani psychologist Azad Isazade noted that, as a rule, 1-2 out of 10 suicide attempts end in death. "If 36 people died, it means there were 350-400 attempts. Suicides have two motives: "I can't live" and "I can't stand it anymore," Isazade said.
An article about the suicides of military personnel who participated in the 44-day war was published by the BBC, noting that in the two years following 2020, the media alone reported 26 cases of suicide.
After the war, protests are regularly held in Azerbaijan. Protesters speak out against the state’s social policy, demanding disability status and appropriate pensions. War participants are particularly outraged by bureaucratic obstacles, claiming that it takes months to grant disability status and that their applications are often rejected.
In fact, people who participated in the war and were injured have been left without government support: they cannot receive disability status, pension or find a job. BBC concludes that the difficult socio-psychological situation after the war, combined with the lack of rehabilitation treatment, especially in the regions, sometimes leads to suicide.
In Azerbaijan, participants of the war with veteran status receive an allowance equivalent to $50. Those who have been granted disability status receive a presidential pension ranging from $175 to $235, depending on the disability group. According to the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan, 76,000 participants have received veteran status, and the status of another 13,000 is under check. About 3,000 people have been recognized as war invalids.
It should be noted that these numbers do not reflect reality. According to Yusif Aliyev, director of the Guba branch of Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University, 2,907 Azerbaijani servicemen were killed in the war, more than a thousand private soldiers and officers were injured, 7 people went missing.
If the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan reports that 76,000 participants received veteran status, 13,000 are yet to verify their status, and 3,000 are disabled, then the number of veterans committing suicide is likely much higher, given the policies of the ruling regime and the social situation in the country.