Children interrogated in Azerbaijan
April 24, 2009
On March 25, eight men raided the house of seventy-year old Vera. The cause of the raid -- she was a long-standing Christian who was telling Bible stories to twelve children. The officers told Vera "We have long been after you and now we've caught you!"
Despite the fact that all the children were at the house with specific permission from their parents, the officers treated the children like kidnapping victims. They put all the children in one room and a teacher, a police officer, and a State Committee official questioned them without allowing their parents to be present. Neighbors on either side of the house could hear the children's crying. Only after the officials gathered each child’s name did they allow their parents to take them home.
The police confiscated 508 books and 40 film recordings. They also took three church visitors in for questioning. The women were interrogated for four hours and their identity documents were confiscated before they were released.
-- adapted from Forum 18
On March 25, eight men raided the house of seventy-year old Vera. The cause of the raid -- she was a long-standing Christian who was telling Bible stories to twelve children. The officers told Vera "We have long been after you and now we've caught you!"
Despite the fact that all the children were at the house with specific permission from their parents, the officers treated the children like kidnapping victims. They put all the children in one room and a teacher, a police officer, and a State Committee official questioned them without allowing their parents to be present. Neighbors on either side of the house could hear the children's crying. Only after the officials gathered each child’s name did they allow their parents to take them home.
The police confiscated 508 books and 40 film recordings. They also took three church visitors in for questioning. The women were interrogated for four hours and their identity documents were confiscated before they were released.
-- adapted from Forum 18