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Reporters without Borders calls on Hollande to raise human rights
issue during his visit to Baku
15:00 10/05/2014 » LAW
In regard of the forthcoming visit of French President Francois
Hollande to Azerbaijan the Secretary General of the international
human rights organization "Reporters without Borders" Christophe
Deloire, published an open letter to Hollande in which he calls to
raise the issue of human rights violations in Azerbaijan, the release
of the arrested journalists and bloggers, as well as to remind
Azerbaijani counterpart about his commitments in human rights area.
`As you prepare for an official visit to Baku on 11 and 12 May,
Reporters Without Borders, an international organization that
campaigns for freedom of information, wishes to draw your attention to
the elimination of media pluralism in Azerbaijan. The country lies in
160th place out of 180 in our 2014 World Press Freedom Index. In a
media sector already largely controlled by the authorities, the
crackdown on journalists, bloggers and independent news outlets
continues to intensify,' reads the statement.
As General Secretary, Reporters Without Borders reports a biased
regulatory authority, dubious acquisitions and the manipulation of the
advertising market have given the authorities complete control over
the broadcasting sector. The main foreign stations such as the BBC and
Radio Free Europe have been barred since 2009. A handful of
independent newspapers struggle to survive. The main one, Azadlig, is
crumbling under the weight of astronomical fines and is close to
financial strangulation.
According to the statement News providers that criticize the
government face all kinds of attempts to intimidate them: threats,
assaults, blackmail, smear campaigns. At least 10 journalists and
numerous bloggers are in prison because of their activities of
informing the public.
The threats that independent journalists face have forced many to flee
the country. However, the authorities' reach goes well beyond the
country's borders. On 18 April this year, the journalist Rauf
Mirkadyrov of the independent newspaper Zerkalo was extradited to
Azerbaijan from Turkey where he was based. As soon as he arrived, he
was accused of spying for Armenia and put in prison.
`Although we understand perfectly well the economic and strategic
advantages of closer ties with Baku, a frank dialogue between partners
should not ignore a basic freedom,' notes Christophe Deloire stressing
that the abolition of media pluralism considerably hampers the rule of
law and the fight against corruption in Azerbaijan, without which Baku
cannot be considered a reliable partner.
Earlier a similar statement was made by Human Rights Watch, which
urged the French President during his visit to raise the human rights
issue in Azerbaijan. Also, parliamentarians from France-Karabakh
friendship group appealed to the President of France, for the latter
to remind his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev about his
commitment on human rights in the frameworks of assumption of the
chairmanship in the Council of Europe and about European Convention on
Human Rights.
Source: Panorama.am
issue during his visit to Baku
15:00 10/05/2014 » LAW
In regard of the forthcoming visit of French President Francois
Hollande to Azerbaijan the Secretary General of the international
human rights organization "Reporters without Borders" Christophe
Deloire, published an open letter to Hollande in which he calls to
raise the issue of human rights violations in Azerbaijan, the release
of the arrested journalists and bloggers, as well as to remind
Azerbaijani counterpart about his commitments in human rights area.
`As you prepare for an official visit to Baku on 11 and 12 May,
Reporters Without Borders, an international organization that
campaigns for freedom of information, wishes to draw your attention to
the elimination of media pluralism in Azerbaijan. The country lies in
160th place out of 180 in our 2014 World Press Freedom Index. In a
media sector already largely controlled by the authorities, the
crackdown on journalists, bloggers and independent news outlets
continues to intensify,' reads the statement.
As General Secretary, Reporters Without Borders reports a biased
regulatory authority, dubious acquisitions and the manipulation of the
advertising market have given the authorities complete control over
the broadcasting sector. The main foreign stations such as the BBC and
Radio Free Europe have been barred since 2009. A handful of
independent newspapers struggle to survive. The main one, Azadlig, is
crumbling under the weight of astronomical fines and is close to
financial strangulation.
According to the statement News providers that criticize the
government face all kinds of attempts to intimidate them: threats,
assaults, blackmail, smear campaigns. At least 10 journalists and
numerous bloggers are in prison because of their activities of
informing the public.
The threats that independent journalists face have forced many to flee
the country. However, the authorities' reach goes well beyond the
country's borders. On 18 April this year, the journalist Rauf
Mirkadyrov of the independent newspaper Zerkalo was extradited to
Azerbaijan from Turkey where he was based. As soon as he arrived, he
was accused of spying for Armenia and put in prison.
`Although we understand perfectly well the economic and strategic
advantages of closer ties with Baku, a frank dialogue between partners
should not ignore a basic freedom,' notes Christophe Deloire stressing
that the abolition of media pluralism considerably hampers the rule of
law and the fight against corruption in Azerbaijan, without which Baku
cannot be considered a reliable partner.
Earlier a similar statement was made by Human Rights Watch, which
urged the French President during his visit to raise the human rights
issue in Azerbaijan. Also, parliamentarians from France-Karabakh
friendship group appealed to the President of France, for the latter
to remind his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev about his
commitment on human rights in the frameworks of assumption of the
chairmanship in the Council of Europe and about European Convention on
Human Rights.
Source: Panorama.am