D**S 发帖数: 24887 | 1 http://www.rferl.org/content/azerbaijan-gay-rights-defender-dea
By RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service
Last updated (GMT/UTC): 23.01.2014 15:06
BAKU -- A well-known gay rights defender in Azerbaijan has been found dead
in his Baku apartment, the victim of an apparent suicide.
Isa Sahmarli, 20, was the chairman of the Azad LGBT (Free Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, and Transgender) group.
Sahmarli's friends say he hanged himself.
The openly gay activist left a note on his Facebook page.
"I am leaving you," the note said. "God bless you. This country and this
world are not for me. I am going to be happy now. Tell my mother I loved her
very much. I blame you all for my death. This world is not colorful enough
for my colors. Farewell."
Society in Azerbaijan, as in many other former Soviet republics where same-
sex relations were decriminalized in the 1990s, remains generally hostile
toward homosexuality. | D**S 发帖数: 24887 | 2 He is only 20!
I hardly knew anything for certain about myself at that age yet this lad was
already helping others, but I guess the overall negativity of things
surrounding him just turned too much to bear...
What a tragedy! |
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