Photo: Chiza Architectural Bureau
This year’s European Grand Prix will take place in Baku, Azerbaijan, but human rights activists want people to boycott the race.
While holding a Formula 1 race titled “European Grand Prix” in Azerbaijan, a country which was not in Europe when we last checked the map, is controversial, what’s worse is that the hosting nation does not have a sound situation concerning human rights.
According to representatives of Sport for Rights, the former Soviet state has several problems in the field of human rights, and they have met with FIA officials to discuss the matter. Motorsport Magazine reports that the talks were “constructive,” quoting people present at the discussions.
FIA, the International Federation of the Automobile, is the governing body responsible for Formula 1 races, among many other branches of motorsport.
The Grand Prix organized in Azerbaijan is not the first Formula 1 event to be criticized by human rights groups, as the Bahrain GP and the Chinese GP are also held in countries with “dubious human rights laws.”
In the case of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan and host of the 2016 European Grand Prix, human rights activists say the event is an “affront to human rights.”
According to the activists, Azerbaijan has imprisoned journalists, and is also embarking on an “unprecedented crackdown on political opposition.” Reading this is no joy for anyone, especially if they are journalists, and the steps undertaken by the leaders in Baku are more fit for a totalitarian regime, rather than a democratic form of government.
Since stopping the race is out of the question, activists have requested celebrity guests to cancel their appearances. Obviously, they would also love to see people boycott the race, but we are talking about the most expensive form of motorsport, and we do not expect anybody to abandon pricey tickets on this concern, unless he or she were in physical danger.
Ever since the 2012 Bahrain GP, Bernie Ecclestone dismissed controversy, claiming the country’s human rights have “nothing to do with Formula 1,” and stated that they do not interfere with politics. However, since that event, the FIA introduced a “human rights code of practice,” a move which was welcomed by human rights campaigners.
According to representatives of Sport for Rights, the former Soviet state has several problems in the field of human rights, and they have met with FIA officials to discuss the matter. Motorsport Magazine reports that the talks were “constructive,” quoting people present at the discussions.
FIA, the International Federation of the Automobile, is the governing body responsible for Formula 1 races, among many other branches of motorsport.
The Grand Prix organized in Azerbaijan is not the first Formula 1 event to be criticized by human rights groups, as the Bahrain GP and the Chinese GP are also held in countries with “dubious human rights laws.”
In the case of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan and host of the 2016 European Grand Prix, human rights activists say the event is an “affront to human rights.”
According to the activists, Azerbaijan has imprisoned journalists, and is also embarking on an “unprecedented crackdown on political opposition.” Reading this is no joy for anyone, especially if they are journalists, and the steps undertaken by the leaders in Baku are more fit for a totalitarian regime, rather than a democratic form of government.
Since stopping the race is out of the question, activists have requested celebrity guests to cancel their appearances. Obviously, they would also love to see people boycott the race, but we are talking about the most expensive form of motorsport, and we do not expect anybody to abandon pricey tickets on this concern, unless he or she were in physical danger.
Ever since the 2012 Bahrain GP, Bernie Ecclestone dismissed controversy, claiming the country’s human rights have “nothing to do with Formula 1,” and stated that they do not interfere with politics. However, since that event, the FIA introduced a “human rights code of practice,” a move which was welcomed by human rights campaigners.
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