...[T]he state is facing increased scrutiny of its human rights record, with a series of incidents threatening to cast a shadow over the event’s finale this weekend. Sharp criticism from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch has put the president’s administration on the defensive. Local activists claim hundreds of Baku residents were removed from their homes illegally to make way for new construction projects, including the Eurovision concert hall...“When else can we make noise? Eurovision is it – at no other time would anyone pay attention to us,” says Nurija Halikova, who was kicked out of her home in downtown Baku and given compensation that she says was no more than two-thirds the market price.