Ilham Aliyev
Encyclopedia
Ilham Heydar oglu Aliyev (Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani alphabet
In the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani alphabet refers to a Latin alphabet used for writing the Azerbaijani language. This superseded a previous versions based on Cyrillic and Arabic scripts....

: İlham Heydər oğlu Əliyev, Илһам Һејдәр оғлу Әлиев, ایلهام علیف; born 24 December 1961, Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...

) is the President of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

 since 2003. He also functions as the Chairman of the New Azerbaijan Party
New Azerbaijan Party
The New Azerbaijan Party is the ruling political party in Azerbaijan. It was formed on 18 December 1992 by the former President of Azerbaijan Heydar Aliyev, who led it until his retirement and death in 2003...

 and the head of the National Olympic Committee. Apart from his native Azerbaijani
Azerbaijani language
Azerbaijani or Azeri or Torki is a language belonging to the Turkic language family, spoken in southwestern Asia by the Azerbaijani people, primarily in Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran...

, he speaks English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

, Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...

, and Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...

.

Ilham Aliyev is the son of Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Aliyev
Heydar Alirza oglu Aliyev , also spelled as Heidar Aliev, Geidar Aliev, Haydar Aliyev, Geydar Aliyev was the third President of Azerbaijan for the New Azerbaijan Party from June 1993 to October 2003, when his son Ilham Aliyev succeeded him.From 1969 till 1982, Aliyev was also the leader of Soviet...

, who was Azerbaijan's president from 1993-2003.

Early life

In 1977 Aliyev entered the Moscow State University of International Relations (MSUIR) and in 1982 continued his education as a postgraduate. In 1985 he received a PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

 degree in history. In 1985-1990 Aliyev has been lecturing at MSUIR.

Early years

In May 1994, Ilham Aliyev was appointed vice-president of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan
State Oil Company of Azerbaijan
The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic is the state-owned oil and natural gas corporation of Azerbaijan. It is considered to be one of the largest oil companies in the world. It produces oil and natural gas, operates the country's two oil refineries and the running of oil and gas pipelines...

 (SOCAR). He participated as one of the key figures during the negotiations between Azerbaijani government and Western oil companies during the conclusion of new contracts now known as Contract of the century. The following year Aliyev was elected to the National Assembly of Azerbaijan
National Assembly of Azerbaijan
The National Assembly , also transliterated as Milli Majlis is the legislative branch of government in Azerbaijan. The unicameral National Assembly has 125 deputies: previously 100 members were elected for five-year terms in single-seat constituencies and 25 were members elected by proportional...

 and later became president of the National Olympic Committee (still incumbent) and head of the Azerbaijan delegation to the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...

. In August 2003, two months prior to the presidential elections
Azerbaijan presidential election, 2003
A presidential election was held in Azerbaijan on October 15, 2003. As expected, Ilham Aliyev, son of the outgoing president, Heydar Aliyev, was easily elected in an election which international observers held not to be free or fair....

, he was appointed prime minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...

. In October, Heydar Aliyev, suffering failing health, stepped down as president and in a controversial move, appointed his son, an independent candidate, as his party's sole presidential candidate.

2003 presidential elections

The official results of the October 15, 2003, elections gave victory to Ilham Aliyev, who earned 76.84% of the votes. However, the domestic opposition refused to accept the results and staged mass protests. The protests were due to alleged corruption and staging of elections.

The elections received harsh criticism from the international community, with many observers noting that they fell short of international standards and were accompanied by voter intimidation, unequal campaign opportunities for the candidates, and widespread violations of the electoral laws and process. The OSCE
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe is the world's largest security-oriented intergovernmental organization. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, human rights, freedom of the press and fair elections...

 International Election Observation Mission noted a number of irregularities in the counting and tabulation. Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...

 complained that Aliyev's election campaign had been supported by government resources and that the Central Election Commission and local election commissions had been stacked with its supporters, while local non-governmental organizations had been banned from monitoring the vote.

Presidency

Opposition members and human rights activists complain that during Aliyev's presidency the human rights situation has not improved. Opposition mass meetings remained banned or were allowed to be held in remote parts of Baku, thus aiming at demoralizing and making it difficult for supporters of opposition to reach there, and the government has continued to pressure the opposition and independent press. In March 2005 under continued pressure from the international community, especially the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...

, Aliyev released from prison many prominent members of the opposition, arrested during protests against the way the October 2003 election was conducted.

For his human rights violations and uncontested rule over Azerbaijan, Aliyev is considered a dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...

 by many experts on the Caucasus and the former USSR. In 2010, WikiLeaks uncovered a diplomatic cable dispatched by the US Embassy in the Republic of Azerbaijan, part of the cache of documents obtained by the WikiLeaks website, that explicitly compared Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to a mafia crime boss, leaving many to wonder if his government was actually democratic and whether people truthfully believed that Azerbaijan does not repress minority populations. A number of groups have also complained to the Commission on Human Rights for the purpose of adopting a resolution, which urges Azerbaijan to guarantee the preservation of the cultural, religious and national identity of the Talysh people in light of repeated claims of repression.
On March 26, 2005, Aliyev was officially elected as the ruling New Azerbaijan Party chairman. The opposition denounced this as a violation of state laws, because according to the law on political parties, the president should have no party affiliation.

In April 2006, President Aliyev made a state visit to Washington, D.C. It was a remarkably successful trip, at least in terms of image. Speaking at a public forum sponsored by the prestigious Council on Foreign Relations, Aliyev discussed oil, economic development, and democracy with an audience of reporters and others. The visit was capped with a private meeting in the White House with President George W. Bush, who told reporters that their discussion was "really interesting", although he also said the meeting was "candid" - sometimes a code word for "tense". Opposition groups said that an official meeting with President Bush sent an inappropriate signal that the violence and intimidation of the 2005 parliamentary election was now a closed matter.

In 2008, Aliyev declared that “Nagorno Karabakh will never be independent; the position is backed by international mediators as well; Armenia has to accept the reality” and that “in 1918, Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...

 was granted to the Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....

. It was a great mistake. The khanate of Iravan
Erivan Khanate
The Khanate of Erivan , was an administrative territory that was established Safavid Persia in the early 17th century. It covered an area of roughly 7,500 square miles, and corresponded to most of present-day central Armenia, most of the Iğdır Province of present-day Turkey, and the Sharur and...

 was the Azeri territory, the Armenians were guests there."

Ilham Aliyev was re-elected in 2008
Azerbaijani presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in Azerbaijan on 15 October 2008. Ilham Aliyev of the New Azerbaijan Party was re-elected with 87% of the votes, according to official results...

 with 87% of the polls, while opposition parties boycotted the elections. In a constitutional referendum in 2009
Azerbaijani constitutional referendum, 2009
A constitutional referendum was held in Azerbaijan on 18 March 2009. It consisted of 29 measures voted on separately; the most controversial were a measure to abolish presidential term limits and a measure to greatly restrict press freedom...

, term limit
Term limit
A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method to curb the potential for monopoly, where a leader effectively becomes "president for...

s for the presidency were abolished and freedom of the press
Freedom of the press
Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the freedom of communication and expression through vehicles including various electronic media and published materials...

 was restricted.

The 2010 parliamentary elections
Azerbaijani parliamentary election, 2010
A parliamentary election was held in Azerbaijan on 7 November 2010.-Candidates:The registration of candidates ends October 15 when the campaign period ends...

 produced a Parliament completely loyal to Aliyev: for the first time in Azerbaijani history, not a single candidate from the main opposition Azerbaijan Popular Front or Musavat parties was elected. The Economist
The Economist
The Economist is an English-language weekly news and international affairs publication owned by The Economist Newspaper Ltd. and edited in offices in the City of Westminster, London, England. Continuous publication began under founder James Wilson in September 1843...

subsequently scored Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

 as an authoritarian regime, at the 135° place on 167, in its 2010 Democracy Index
Democracy Index
The Democracy Index is an index compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit that claims to measure the state of democracy in 167 countries, of which 166 are sovereign states and 165 are UN member states...

.

Repeated protests
2011 Azerbaijani protests
The 2011 Azerbaijani protests are an ongoing series of demonstrations being held to protest the government of President Ilham Aliyev. Common themes espoused by demonstrators, many of whom are affiliated with Müsavat and the Popular Front Party, the main opposition parties in Azerbaijan, include...

 were staged against Aliyev's rule in 2011, calling for democratic reforms and the ouster of the government. Aliyev has responded by ordering a security crackdown, using force to crush attempts at revolt in Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...

. Officials loyal to the president have dismissed protesters' comparison of Azerbaijan to other countries considered to be part of the same revolutionary wave
Revolutionary wave
A revolutionary wave is a series of revolutions occurring in various locations in a similar time period. In many cases, an initial revolution inspires other "affiliate revolutions" with similar aims....

 that has rocked North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...

 and Western Asia since December 2010, and Aliyev has rejected the precedent set by leaders in Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...

, Oman
Oman
Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...

, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...

, and other affected states by refusing to make concessions. Well over 400 Azerbaijanis have been arrested since protests began in March 2011. Opposition leaders, including Musavat's Isa Gambar
Isa Gambar
Isa Yunis oglu Qambar , also known as Isa Gambar or Isa Qambar , is an Azerbaijani politician and leader of Equality Party , the largest opposition block in Azerbaijan.-Biography details:...

, have vowed to continue demonstrating, although police have encountered little difficulty in stopping protests almost as soon as they begin.

Personal life

Ilham Aliyev is married to Mehriban Aliyeva
Mehriban Aliyeva
Mehriban Arif qizi Aliyeva is the head of Azerbaijan's Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the wife of its current president Ilham Aliyev. The Sunday Times, writing in 2005 about Mrs...

 and has three children: Leyla, Arzu and Heydar. He also has an older sister, Sevil Aliyeva.

Honors

Ilham Aliyev's major honors include: Order of Honor (2003) Order of the Star of Romania
Order of the Star of Romania
The Order of the Star of Romania is Romania's highest civil order. It is awarded by the President of Romania...

 (2004, awarded by Ion Iliescu
Ion Iliescu
Ion Iliescu served as President of Romania from 1990 until 1996, and from 2000 until 2004. From 1996 to 2000 and from 2004 until his retirement in 2008, Iliescu was a Senator for the Social Democratic Party , whose honorary president he remains....

) Order of Heydar Aliyev Order of Abdulaziz al Saud
Order of Abdulaziz al Saud
The Order of Abdulaziz al Saud is a Saudi-Arabian Order of merit. The order has been named after Abdulaziz Al Saud who founded the Saudi kingdom and died in 1953.-History:...

 (2005, awarded by Fahd of Saudi Arabia
Fahd of Saudi Arabia
Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, was King of Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005...

) Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur (2007, awarded by French Ambassador in Baku Bernard Chaffin) Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (2008, awarded by Lech Kaczyński
Lech Kaczynski
Lech Aleksander Kaczyński was Polish lawyer and politician who served as the President of Poland from 2005 until 2010 and as Mayor of Warsaw from 2002 until 22 December 2005. Before he became a president, he was also a member of the party Prawo i Sprawiedliwość...

) Order of Yaroslav the Wise 1st degree (2008, awarded by Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Yushchenko
Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko is a former President of Ukraine. He took office on January 23, 2005, following a period of popular unrest known as the Orange Revolution...

) Medal For Distinction in Protection of CIS
CIS
CIS usually refers to the Commonwealth of Independent States, a modern political entity consisting of eleven former Soviet Union republics.The acronym CIS may also refer to:-Organizations:...

 State Borders and Badge for Strengthening of Border Cooperation (2008) Gold Medal of the Greek Parliament (2009) Order of Glory and Honor 1st degree (2010, conferred by Kirill I of Moscow) Order of Sheikhulislam (Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...

) The Order of St. Sergius I degree (Орден Преподобного Сергия Радонежского I степени (РПЦ))
  • Order of Glory «Great Cordon» (International Military Sport Council)
  • Order of Glory of the International Confederation of Sport Organizations of CIS countries
  • Supreme Order of the Hall of Fame FILA "Legend of Sport"; The Order of Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow
    Order of Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow
    The Order of Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow is an award of the Russian Orthodox Church, established in 1978...

    , I degreeОрден святого благоверного князя Даниила Московского I степени Order of Mubarak Al-Kabeer (2009, Kuwait
    Kuwait
    The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

    ) Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Three Stars (Степень «Кавалера Большого Креста» ордена «Три звезды») (Latvia
    Latvia
    Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...

    ) Юбилейная медаль «10 лет Астане»
  • Премия Ихсана Дограмачи за мир и международные отношения (Turkey
    Turkey
    Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

    )
  • Лауреат «Гран-при» премии "Персона года 2009" (Russia
    Russia
    Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

    )
  • Лауреат премии "Друг журналистов"
  • “Man of the Year” by «Balcanii şi Europa» magazine (Romania
    Romania
    Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

    )
  • Honorary Professor of the Turkmenistan State University named after Makhtumkuli (Turkmenistan
    Turkmenistan
    Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...

    ).
  • Honorary Professor of the Belarusian State University
  • Honorary Professor of Moscow State University (2008)
  • Honorary Professor of L.N.Gumilev Eurasian National University (Kazakhstan)
  • Honorary Professor of University of National and World Economy (Bulgaria
    Bulgaria
    Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of Lincoln University (USA)
  • Honorary Doctor of the Moscow State University of International Relations
  • Honorary Doctor of Bilkent University (Turkey
    Turkey
    Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of National Academy for Taxes (Ukraine
    Ukraine
    Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of Petroleum and Gas University of Ploesti (Romania
    Romania
    Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of Kyung Hee University (South Korea
    South Korea
    The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of Jordan University (Jordan
    Jordan
    Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of Social Sciences of the Corvinus University (Hungary
    Hungary
    Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

    )
  • Honorary Doctor of the Kiev National University named after Taras Shevchenko (Ukraine
    Ukraine
    Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

    )


On 21 November 2009, Aliyev was also included in a 500 Most Influential Muslims of World book.

In popular culture

Aliyev's photo is shown in the final frames of Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, often referred to simply as Borat, is a 2006 mockumentary comedy film directed by Larry Charles and distributed by 20th Century Fox...

implying misleadingly that he is the president of Borat's fictionalised Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...

.

External links


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