Several dozen activists advocating for women's rights and equality staged an unsanctioned protest in the heart of Baku on March 8. Displaying slogans including "Killing women are political crimes", "Protect our lives", and "Do not reconcile, but investigate," the protesters congregated at Fountain Square and walked towards the Azerbaijan cinema with a police escort. While en route, they chanted their slogans and even lit flares, which were extinguished by the police. At the Azerbaijan cinema, the police stopped the demonstrators, who remained there for over thirty minutes chanting slogans. The feminists then read out their demands before dispersing peacefully without any significant incidents involving the police.