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Azerbaijan Cracks Down On Press As Eurovision Nears: International W

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  • Azerbaijan Cracks Down On Press As Eurovision Nears: International W

    AZERBAIJAN CRACKS DOWN ON PRESS AS EUROVISION NEARS: INTERNATIONAL WATCHDOG CONCERNED

    epress.am
    04.03.2012

    The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply disturbed by
    the recent wave of journalist imprisonments in Azerbaijan. With at
    least six journalists currently behind bars, Azerbaijan is now among
    the top 10 global jailers of the press, ahead of Uzbekistan and just
    behind Ethiopia, according to CPJ research. This crackdown comes in
    the run-up to Eurovision, the international song contest that Baku
    is hosting in May, which will gather journalists from more than
    40 participating countries and fix the world's eyes on Azerbaijan,
    writes CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon in a letter to Azerbaijan's
    President Ilham Aliyev, which continues as follows:

    "Your government has used significant resources to polish the country's
    image ahead of the Eurovision contest and make it appealing to its
    international guests. However, we believe your efforts would be
    meaningless if the government continues to crack down on independent
    voices in the country. By implementing systematic reform, and urging
    the relevant authorities to investigate potential abuses of power,
    we believe you could stem the deterioration of press freedom in
    Azerbaijan.

    "According to CPJ research, your government is holding in custody
    editor Avaz Zeynally and journalist Aidyn Dzhaniyev of the independent
    daily Khural; reporter Anar Bayramli and his driver, Ramil Dadashev,
    from the Iranian broadcaster Sahar TV; editor Ramin Bayramov of the
    Islamic news website Islam-Azeri; and directors Zaur Guliyev and
    Vugar Gonagov of the regional TV channel Khayal. We are attaching a
    more detailed list of the imprisoned journalists to this letter.

    "The journalists have been imprisoned on fabricated, politicized
    charges - ranging from hooliganism and drug possession to incitement
    to mass order - that stemmed from their work, CPJ research shows. Two
    of them have already been convicted and are serving prison terms,
    while the others are jailed pending a trial, according to CPJ sources.

    "President Aliyev, we call on you to exercise the high authority
    of your office and instruct the relevant authorities to investigate
    the cases of these journalists who languish in jail simply because
    of their critical reporting. We urge you to uphold your declared
    commitment to international press freedom standards and ensure the
    immediate and unconditional release of these journalists."




    From: A. Papazian
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