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AZER GASIMOV: SLANDEROUS MATERIAL ABOUT AZERBAIJAN PUBLISHED BY ISRAELI JERUSALEM POST AND HAARETZ NEWSPAPERS IS NOTHING BUT NONSENSE
AZERBAIJAN STATE TELEGRAPH AGENCY
Dec 22 2014
22.12.2014 [20:41]
AzerTAc interviewed Press-Secretary of the President of Azerbaijan
Azer Gasimov
Baku, December 22, AzerTAc
- Mr. Gasimov, the Israeli press has recently published strongly biased
anti-Azerbaijani articles. Just a couple of days ago Israeli Jerusalem
Post and Haaretz newspapers published groundless, slanderous articles
against Azerbaijan. Taking into consideration the relations between
the government and the mass media in Israel, this can be treated
as the execution of an official order. We would like to learn your
opinion on this.
- Yes. As you mentioned such articles on Azerbaijan have been
periodically published in the Israeli media recently. Indeed, taking
into account government-media relations in Israel, one can see that
it is no coincidence. In particularly, the fact that official bodies
have not reacted to such articles gives grounds to say that it is
an official order. Concerning the articles in Haaretz and Jerusalem
Post newspapers I would like to say that they are strongly biased,
far from journalistic ethics, slanderous, and are nothing but nonsense.
Undoubtedly such articles were funded by the forces that have been
carrying out an anti-Azerbaijani campaign recently, and it is an
absolute order. Pretending to be defending the rights of Khadija
Ismayilova, these articles, in reality, are nothing but defamation
of general development processes in Azerbaijan. The authors of these
articles would be better focusing their attention on violation of
human rights, the freedom of speech and conscience, in general,
democratic principles, and other negative cases in their own countries.
In fact, in Israel itself, the situation related to journalistic
activity is deplorable. If we look at reports of international
organizations, we can see that they regularly highlight cases of the
Israeli security forces` violent treatment of journalists, including
their arrests and beating. This year`s events are enough to prove this.
On March 7, 2014, a representative of Agence France-Presse was
assaulted, while security forces stood by and just watched the
incident. On March 11, 2014 the security forces prevented journalists
from documenting a protest demonstration and fired at them. According
to Associated Press, the same day two journalists who wanted to
document protests in Al Quds were assaulted. Employees of Reuters
and Associated Press were severely beaten. Frequent imposition of
censorship on the press in Israel, bans on free movement of journalists
in Israel can be added here. Interestingly, in the World Press Freedom
Index, Israel fell from 36th place in 2004 to 112th in 2013. There are
regular reports of serious corruption in the highest government circles
of the country. Deprivation of equal rights of citizens in Israel,
including education opportunities, cases of social discrimination
are the problems which seriously concern the society.
I think that the authors of these articles and those who are behind
these writings, in fact, seriously defame Israel`s international
image. Those who ordered these articles certainly set themselves a goal
to spoil Israeli-Azerbaijani relations. These forces do not want to see
Azerbaijan`s strengthening positions on the international scene, its
great achievements in ensuring democracy, and traditions of tolerance
and multiculturalism, which can be an example to many countries.
Azerbaijan is pursuing an independent foreign policy and builds its
relations with all states, except for Armenia, based on the principles
of mutual respect. This, for its part, seriously concerns the forces
who are behind the aforementioned articles. They should know that
such attempts are nothing but a chimera.
http://azertag.az/en/xeber/820202
AZERBAIJAN STATE TELEGRAPH AGENCY
Dec 22 2014
22.12.2014 [20:41]
AzerTAc interviewed Press-Secretary of the President of Azerbaijan
Azer Gasimov
Baku, December 22, AzerTAc
- Mr. Gasimov, the Israeli press has recently published strongly biased
anti-Azerbaijani articles. Just a couple of days ago Israeli Jerusalem
Post and Haaretz newspapers published groundless, slanderous articles
against Azerbaijan. Taking into consideration the relations between
the government and the mass media in Israel, this can be treated
as the execution of an official order. We would like to learn your
opinion on this.
- Yes. As you mentioned such articles on Azerbaijan have been
periodically published in the Israeli media recently. Indeed, taking
into account government-media relations in Israel, one can see that
it is no coincidence. In particularly, the fact that official bodies
have not reacted to such articles gives grounds to say that it is
an official order. Concerning the articles in Haaretz and Jerusalem
Post newspapers I would like to say that they are strongly biased,
far from journalistic ethics, slanderous, and are nothing but nonsense.
Undoubtedly such articles were funded by the forces that have been
carrying out an anti-Azerbaijani campaign recently, and it is an
absolute order. Pretending to be defending the rights of Khadija
Ismayilova, these articles, in reality, are nothing but defamation
of general development processes in Azerbaijan. The authors of these
articles would be better focusing their attention on violation of
human rights, the freedom of speech and conscience, in general,
democratic principles, and other negative cases in their own countries.
In fact, in Israel itself, the situation related to journalistic
activity is deplorable. If we look at reports of international
organizations, we can see that they regularly highlight cases of the
Israeli security forces` violent treatment of journalists, including
their arrests and beating. This year`s events are enough to prove this.
On March 7, 2014, a representative of Agence France-Presse was
assaulted, while security forces stood by and just watched the
incident. On March 11, 2014 the security forces prevented journalists
from documenting a protest demonstration and fired at them. According
to Associated Press, the same day two journalists who wanted to
document protests in Al Quds were assaulted. Employees of Reuters
and Associated Press were severely beaten. Frequent imposition of
censorship on the press in Israel, bans on free movement of journalists
in Israel can be added here. Interestingly, in the World Press Freedom
Index, Israel fell from 36th place in 2004 to 112th in 2013. There are
regular reports of serious corruption in the highest government circles
of the country. Deprivation of equal rights of citizens in Israel,
including education opportunities, cases of social discrimination
are the problems which seriously concern the society.
I think that the authors of these articles and those who are behind
these writings, in fact, seriously defame Israel`s international
image. Those who ordered these articles certainly set themselves a goal
to spoil Israeli-Azerbaijani relations. These forces do not want to see
Azerbaijan`s strengthening positions on the international scene, its
great achievements in ensuring democracy, and traditions of tolerance
and multiculturalism, which can be an example to many countries.
Azerbaijan is pursuing an independent foreign policy and builds its
relations with all states, except for Armenia, based on the principles
of mutual respect. This, for its part, seriously concerns the forces
who are behind the aforementioned articles. They should know that
such attempts are nothing but a chimera.
http://azertag.az/en/xeber/820202