In many of his interviews to different mass media he detailed why he landed in ‘such a position’. But we think that it is his professional life that gives the clearest insight into his determination to fight. His professional life mirrors the situation shared by all of us….

 

In 1969 a film In This Southern City based on the short novel and scenario of R. Ibragimbeyov, was released. I remember well Eldar Guliyev, the director of the film (it was his first film) having come to us to see my grandfather Teymur Useynov, one of the founders of Azerbaijan’s cinematography. They had a very long conversation then trying to figure out why the film had not enjoyed wide release, why it had been third-rated, why the officials had wanted to keep it on the shelf. My grandfather said that we would go together to see this important film. 

 

Almost 37 years passed away and in 2006 Rustam Ibragimbeyov was a producer and screenwriter to a film Goodbye, Southern City. The film got similar scores …

Whatever, but these two films can distinctly explain why he made up his mind to fight, why all of us loving motherland and our Baku and really concerned about future of Azerbaijan, are going to vote for Rustam Ibragimbeyov on the E-day and are undoubtedly going to triumph in resounding victory.

 

Back in 1969 an honest person and a real man of our southern city used to speak to a prosecution official as equals; even when this man did something wrong he himself used to surrender to a policeman to go to the police station. At the end of the film our hero is fatefully roaming alone about the streets of his city finding no answer to his torturous questions.

 

37 years later an honest man of our Baku, a real man is doomed to absolutely different destiny – he will be unlawfully put behind bars and then simply slain on demand of the criminal power.

Here is Baku tormented by the criminals in power. Ibragimbeyov says about them, «the power was practically taken by…5-6 out-and-out disgraceful scoundrels who are terribly ruling our country…Hundreds and thousands of residents are being thrown away from their apartments, their houses are being confiscated…»

 

Here he is, the destructor of our Baku, superbly played by Fuad Poladov. He is commanding, «Destroy! Who the hell are the people now unhappy?! I say – Destroy!» 

 

Haven’t we, Baku people, understood and seen the facts sounded by Ibragimbeyov?

 

Those ruling over Azerbaijan are openly and cynically ordering to kill a man absolutely incapable of threatening their power and the multi-million loot. Man’s killing is inevitable, as was the killing of Elmar Huseynov (publisher and editor of Monitor journal); they are afraid of a man – they are afraid of and put Vugar Aslanov behind bars. On July 21, 2013, Vugar Aslanov, a member of the Youth Committee of the People’s Front Party, was standing alone on the square his mouth closed with his hand. And this young boy lonely standing in demonstrative silence poses a threat (!)…he was immediately seized by the police and sentenced to prison! This latest fact clearly demonstrates fear of the criminal regime and its system of abasement and destruction of human dignity and freedom of spirit.

 

I call on you to look into Ibragimbeyov’s stance on Karabakh. For the first time ever a candidate for presidency utters respect for the enemy, as always did real men of our southern city:

 

The opposition single candidate Rustam Ibragimbeyov is calling on to really search for ways of reclaiming Karabakh and achieving peace instead of insulting, humiliating and doing warlike gestures.

 

«I know and see that our people have hit the bottom…..The country is perishing», he says.

 Don’t we, my fellow citizens, see this every day and every hour?...

 

«It is unbearable to see what is going on in Azerbaijan! The people have been simply abased for 20 years. I sometimes cannot understand what is going on there…I cannot any longer be just a wingside spectator of how they are breaking down the spirit of my nation. We can’t go on like this!», concluded Rustam Ibragimbeyov