Campaign group Human Rights Watch on Friday accused Azerbaijan of carrying out "forcible evictions" during the construction of a concert hall where the Eurovision song contest will be staged in May.
Human Rights Watch said the authorities this week started to evict the last remaining people from an apartment block which is due to be demolished in a square in the capital Baku where the ultramodern Crystal Hall is being built.
"Hosting Eurovision means the Azerbaijani government can showcase Baku to thousands of visitors and millions of television viewers," said Hugh Williamson of Human Rights Watch in a statement.
"However, the event is overshadowed by the illegal evictions, expropriations and demolitions for hundreds of local residents forced out of their homes," he said.
Campaigners allege that several hundred people have been evicted from the area around the square during its redevelopment, under pressure from the Baku city authorities to accept what they claim is inadequate compensation.
But the authorities have rejected allegations of property rights abuses and official intimidation, saying that the construction work is not directly connected to Eurovision but part of a citywide urban renewal scheme.
Azerbaijani singers Ell and Nikki won Eurovision in Duesseldorf in May 2011, giving the Caspian Sea state the right to host the pop extravaganza this year.
The Azerbaijani administration sees Eurovision 2012 as a chance to boost the international profile of a country until now mainly known as an energy exporter on the fringe of Europe.
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