Arzu Geybullayeva (), also known as Arzu Geybulla (), is an Azerbaijani columnist, blogger, and journalist for several newspapers and media news outlets including

Al Jazeera Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...

Foreign Policy A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...

, Global Voices, and

Agos ''Agos'' (in hy, Ակօս, "furrow") is an Armenian bilingual weekly newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey, established on 5 April 1996. ''Agos'' has both Armenian and Turkish pages as well as an online English edition. Today, the paper h ...

. She has also worked with several non-profit organizations and

think-tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmental org ...

s including the

National Democratic Institute The National Democratic Institute (NDI), or National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, is a non-profit American NGO that works with partners in developing countries to increase the effectiveness of democratic institutions. The NDI's ...

and European Stability Initiative. Geybullayeva was included in the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

Life and career

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...

Bilkent University Bilkent University ( tr, Bilkent Üniversitesi) is a private university located in Ankara, Turkey. It was founded by Prof. İhsan Doğramacı in 1984, with the aim of creating a center of excellence in higher education and research. It is constan ...

Ankara Ankara ( , ; ), historically known as Ancyra and Angora, is the capital of Turkey. Located in the central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5.1 million in its urban center and over 5.7 million in Ankara Province, maki ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

While in Istanbul in 2007, Geybullayeva began working for the European Stability Initiative, a non-profit research and policy institute and a think-tank for South East Europe. In September 2008, she started her blog called ''Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines''. Since 2009, she has become a contributing columnist to editorials for

Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Osservatorio Balcani e Caucaso Transeuropa (OBC Transeuropa or OBCT) is a think tank and online newspaper based in Trento, Italy, and specialised on South East Europe. It reports on social, cultural and political developments across 6 EU member ...

, a think-tank based in Italy. She has been a co-director of the Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation since 2011, an organization that fosters relations between Armenians and Azerbaijanis. She is currently the managing editor of ''Neutral Zone'', an internet platform which promotes cultural and social interaction, as well as conflict resolution among Armenians and Azerbaijanis. In regards to Armenian and Azerbaijani reconciliation, she remarked: "It is just like a building under construction – you set the base, so that the building can stand firmly." Since 2013, Geybullayeva has been working as a correspondent for

, an Armenian bilingual weekly newspaper published in Istanbul. In the same year, she became an associate scholar for the

Foreign Policy Research Institute The Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI) is an American think tank based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that conducts research on geopolitics, international relations, and international security in the various regions of the world as well a ...

, an American think-tank based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was included in the

British Broadcasting Corporation #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

's (BBC) list of top women in 2014. Arzu presently lives in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. She speaks English, Azerbaijani, Turkish, and Russian.

Threats and reactions

Geybullayeva has received numerous threats in various social media circles stemming from Azerbaijan over her cooperation with the Istanbul-based Armenian newspaper ''

''. In an interview with Global Voices, she stated she was branded a "traitor" and that the blackmail escalated into death threats towards her and her family. The threats have caused her to refrain from visiting her native Azerbaijan then in a self-imposed exile in Turkey in 2015. The threats were largely condemned by numerous international organizations including

PEN International PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association has autonomous Internationa ...

and its affiliates

English PEN Founded in 1921, English PEN is one of the world's first non-governmental organisations and among the first international bodies advocating for human rights. English PEN was the founding centre of PEN International, a worldwide writers' associati ...

and

PEN Center USA PEN Center USA was a branch of PEN, an international literary and human rights organization. It was one of two PEN International Centers in the United States, the other being the PEN America in New York City. On March 1, 2018, PEN Center USA unifi ...

. PEN has called upon the Azerbaijani and Turkish government to "ensure her safety and to investigate all threats of violence made against her." The

Index on Censorship Index on Censorship is an organization campaigning for freedom of expression, which produces a quarterly magazine of the same name from London. It is directed by the non-profit-making Writers and Scholars International, Ltd (WSI) in association w ...

has also condemned the threats and has called upon the "international community to put pressure on Azerbaijan to respect freedom of expression."

References

External links

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Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines
(Geybullayeva's blog) {{DEFAULTSORT:Geybullayeva, Arzu 1983 births Bilkent University alumni Alumni of the London School of Economics Journalists from Baku Azerbaijani activists Living people Azerbaijani human rights activists Azerbaijani bloggers Azerbaijani women bloggers BBC 100 Women