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OFFICIAL TRACES IN GERMANY'S ANTI-AZERBAIJAN CAMPAIGN
Yeni Azarbaycan
April 18 2012
Azerbaijan
[translated from Azeri]
Today Germany is conducting a dirty campaign against Azerbaijan at
the state level. State officials, government bodies, media and NGOs,
in other words, all organizations have chosen Azerbaijan's activities
as main targets.
The brilliant victory of young Azerbaijanis, Eldar and Nigar, at the
May 2011 Eurovision song contest held in Dusseldorf filled the hearts
of millions of Azerbaijanis with joy. The victory also created ample
opportunities to show Azerbaijan's modern image to the world, inform
the international community of our realities and to promote of the
rich national culture, customs, traditions and history. Naturally,
at that time, nobody thought that those who do not like Azerbaijan
will become active and a large-scale aggressive campaign against
Azerbaijan will be launched, and even Eurovision, a cultural event,
will be politicized.
Germany is currently in charge of the "information war" waged against
Azerbaijan
Analysis of the "information war" declared against Azerbaijan shows
that the main actors of the process are certain circles in the West
that have political and economic interests in Azerbaijan; Armenia
and the Armenian lobby; Islamophobs and the radical opposition. In
the opinion of some politicians and analysts, there is much similar
in the activity of the foreign circles and the radical opposition
who are waging the propaganda campaign against Azerbaijan. That after
Dusseldorf, the UK media launched the massive slander campaign against
Azerbaijan, then Germany took over the relay and the Azerbaijani
opposition enthusiastically supported this insidious process shows
that these claims have serious grounds.
Germany's ambassador to Azerbaijan Herbert Quelle tried to explain
in a specific fashion the "crusade" of the German media in a piece
that Yeni Azarbaycan newspaper published. In his opinion, following
the victory in the Eurovision song contest in Dusseldorf, the German
media began paying more attention to Azerbaijan and alongside positive
information, it came across numerous negative reports on the internet
and proceeded to exaggerate them. The ambassador wrote that the federal
authorities of Germany have no means to influence or give directions
to the independent and powerful German mass media.
Naturally, the theories of the ambassador who protects his country's
interests are nothing but an attempt to explain the problem within the
framework of these interests. The approach of Mr Quelle would not have
been one-sided if he approached the issue from the perspective of a
collapse of important transcontinental energy projects, intensification
of contacts of the German authorities and other political circles
with the Azerbaijani opposition, the active participation of German
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his deputy for [European
affairs] Michael Link in the process, and the topics that they
discussed during meetings with the opposition "leaders".
German foundations are acting as the organizers of the dirty campaign
being waged
The recent groundless and biased materials spread by Germany's leading
media, such as Der Spiegel and ARD were connected with the interests
of certain circles within Germany with regard to Azerbaijan. However,
doubts that there are more powerful forces behind this issue grew
stronger as the leading mass media of Germany joined the process,
as there was a noticeable activation of the German foundations of
Konrad Adenauer, Friedrich Naumann, Heinrich Boll, and Friedrich
Ebert in Azerbaijan, and as the meetings of German officials and MPs
with leaders of opposition parties followed. Investigation brought
to surface evidence that these doubts were not groundless in any way.
Out of the South Caucasus countries, Georgia has taken the path to
NATO integration and Armenia is a member of the Collective Security
Organization that Russia created. Azerbaijan is the only country
that did not join any bloc and conducts an independent policy. In
the opinion of some experts certain Western circles that cannot bear
to see Azerbaijan's independent policy are making active efforts to
bring it into their sphere of influence and currently this task has
been assigned to Germany. This factor explains why Germany is trying
to put pressure on Azerbaijan using both the Eurovision factor and the
standard pressure tools of the West: democracy human rights and so on.
Therefore, experts believe that the current strengthening of the
contacts of German foundations with the radical opposition is not
a coincidence.
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation is acting actively to present the
position of the radical forces in the foreign media
It is no secret that traditionally the German foundations have had
serious relations with the People's Front of Azerbaijan Party (PFAP)
and the Musavat Party. The media have repeatedly published reports
about the special role of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in financing
these parties. The Azerbaijani office of the foundation is being
controlled by Arastun Oruclu, the head of the East-West Research Centre
and a member of the Coordination Council of the organization known as
the "Public Chamber". Michael Link, who used to be the deputy chairman
of German Bundestag's parliamentary group for the South Caucasus,
actively participates and makes presentations in all events held in
Azerbaijan by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation. The media have even
sometimes presented him as an expert of the foundation. According
to information given by the close associates of Ali Karimli, the
opposition camp, especially the PFAP, greeted with great enthusiasm
the news that Link was appointed the deputy foreign minister of
Germany in January 2012. Karimli described Link as "our friend"
and told his associates that this appointment was not a coincidence
at all. When saying this Karimli possibly meant that the Friedrich
Naumann Foundation is affiliated with Germany's Free Democratic Party.
Link is an activist of this part. Consequently, Link's appointment
on the one hand promises more funding from the foundation and on the
other creates conditions for the PFAP to receive support from the
German government and the Free Democratic Party.
The subsequent position of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation on
Azerbaijan is also interesting. According to reports on Georgian
websites, at the event held in Tbilisi in March 2012 discussions were
held on human rights and freedom of speech and media in Azerbaijan.
Yasimin Pamuk, the foundation's project manager for the South Caucasus
sharply criticized Azerbaijan and talked about some projects which
the foundation wanted to implement. The Support Free Future project
envisaged organizing a campaign on human rights and "political
prisoners" in Azerbaijan in the run-up to the Eurovision song contest,
shooting and distributing a special video and staging marches in some
European countries.
Currently, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation is actively working
on the foreign media coverage of the position of radical forces in
Azerbaijan. It is no coincidence that it was under the aegis of this
foundation that representatives of German media leaders of the PFAP
and Musavat, activists, NGO members known as vocal critics of the
government and journalists are having meetings.
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation is trying to compensate for its
difficulties in some countries by expanding its operations in
Azerbaijan
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation known for its links with the chairwoman
of the Christian Democratic Union and the chancellor of Germany,
Angela Merkel, is trying to compensate for its difficulties in
some countries by expanding its operations in Azerbaijan. The Cairo
office of the foundation in Egypt was searched by police and members
of the prosecutor's office on 29 December 2011 and its activities
were banned. Also its office in the United Arab Emirates stopped its
activities on 22 March 2012.
Germany's ambassador to Azerbaijan supports Ali Karimli
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation's office has not been officially
registered in Azerbaijan but its activities have not been restricted
in any way. The organization's representative in Azerbaijan is a
one-time employee of Radio Liberty and is considered an associate of
Ali Karimli. In addition, the representative of the foundation for
the South Caucasus, Canan Atilkan is always keeping in touch with Ali
Karimli and meets him every time he visits Baku. Let us note that
by regularly inviting Ali Karimli to events held abroad Atilkan is
trying to emphasize his problems to international organizations. The
interesting aspect of the matter is that the German ambassador to
Azerbaijan, Quelle, joins the process and lends his support to Ali
Karimli. After his meeting with Quelle in February 2012, Karimli told
his associates that the ambassador promised that Germany will induce
the European Union and the Council of Europe to put serious pressure
on Azerbaijan.
The Friedrich Ebert Foundation extends financial support to
organizations affiliated with the PFAP
Although the Friedrich Ebert Foundation of Germany presents itself as
a neutral organization, it extends financial support to organizations
affiliated with the PFAP. The representative of the foundation in
Azerbaijan, Rasad Huseynli, was once a member of the PFAP and with
support from Karimli and Mehman Aliyev, the director of the Turan news
agency, was appointed a member of the board of the Soros Foundation.
The objective of this appointment was to obtain a majority of votes
within the board when the Soros Foundation made decisions on allocating
grants for NGOs linked with the PFAP. Even now events related to human
rights and democracy issues are held in Azerbaijan at the initiative
and with financial support of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation. It must
be noted that mainly opposition members, NGOs and journalists that
are critical of the government are invited to these events.
Thus, the analysis of the activities of German foundations gives
grounds to say that these organizations are playing an active part in
forming negative opinion of Azerbaijan abroad by funding the opposition
and through various events and campaigns. Considering their closeness
to the top political circles in Germany, it is clear to see what
factors are standing behind the recent surge in their activities.
German officials are also among those who lend support to this dirty
campaign
However, this campaign waged against Azerbaijan with support from
the German government is not limited to the activities of these
organizations. At his meeting with leaders of opposition parties,
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle in addition to discussing
the existing public and political situation in Azerbaijan also spoke
on support of Germany for the opposition. The German embassy and
relevant German bodies did not respond in any way at the righteous
protests of event the ruling New Azerbaijan Party and Milli Maclis
MPs following this event.
The German government's Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and
Humanitarian Aid, Markus Loning, (let us note that he has close
links with the head of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, Wolfgang
Gerhardt) is one of the main organizers of the campaign waged against
Azerbaijan. In August 2011 Loning was remembered by the harsh remarks
he made during the visit to Baku. At the meeting with opposition
members, he said that "Germany is always ready to assist you to make
changes in Azerbaijan".
In keeping with this line, the ombudsman publishes in Der Spiegel
weekly and other German media harsh anti-Azerbaijani materials and
gives interviews. At the moment, Mr Loning is an active participant
of all events held in connection with Azerbaijan. He writes letters to
the state officials, politicians, journalists and musicians who want to
travel to Azerbaijan and invites them to join the campaign being waged
against Azerbaijan. Germany's representative in the Council of Europe,
Kristofer Strasser, repeatedly tries to carry out his plans to visit
Azerbaijan as a rapporteur of the Council of Europe for the alleged
"political prisoners" but for certain objective reasons this does not
happen. Mr Strasser refused to understand that "political prisoners"
is an abstract notion and has no definition in the international
law. On the other hand, why are political motives being sought in the
sentencing of people for specific criminal activities in Azerbaijan
only? Did Armenia restore the rights of the people shot during the
elections, of the dozens of demonstrators arrested then? It is not so
difficult to find political motives in the criminal cases of certain
people in developed European countries too. Another interesting aspect
of the matter is that as an MP of Germany's Bundestag Strasser makes
biased claims against Azerbaijan in remarks to the local media.
Green Party too joined the anti-Azerbaijan campaign
It is also of interest that the Green Party, which is considered a
serious political force in Germany, also became active and joined the
anti-Azerbaijani campaign. Distinguished by her pro-Armenian position,
the deputy chairman of Bundestag's parliamentary group for the South
Caucasus, Viola von Cramon met [self-exiled former Azerbaijani speaker]
Rasul Quliyev, who was visiting Germany, in the beginning of 2012
and discussed her party's support for the Azerbaijani opposition.
In addition, Cramon organized for Quliyev meetings with other MPs.
Recently Cramon even said she wants to put the Eurovision song contest
issue on the agenda in Bundestag. She said she will make Bundestag
appeal to the European Union countries to boycott the Eurovision
contest. It is no coincidence that a German MP from the Green Party,
Folker Berg, openly told the media that "Baku is not suited for
holding Eurovision".
Also as Neue Osnabrucker Zeitung newspaper wrote, in response to the
Green Party's inquiry the German government said that, 136 people
were tortured in Azerbaijan in 2011 and three of them died. The
German government answered the official inquiry not on the basis of
reports by relevant bodies of Azerbaijan or authoritative international
organizations, but using a report of the Azerbaijan Committee Against
Torture puppet organization as a "trusted" source. At the very least,
this is disrespect for German-Azerbaijani relations.
All these cases confirm once again that today Germany is conducting
a dirty campaign against Azerbaijan at the state level. State
officials, government bodies, mass media, and NGOs, in other word
all organizations; have chosen the activities of Azerbaijan as the
main target.
There are good reasons why we were late to respond to the piece that
Mr Ambassador Herbert Quelle published in our newspaper. Because it
took a long time for our editorial staff to find the realities that
he did not say or did not want to say. However, it will probably also
take some time to refute them.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Yeni Azarbaycan
April 18 2012
Azerbaijan
[translated from Azeri]
Today Germany is conducting a dirty campaign against Azerbaijan at
the state level. State officials, government bodies, media and NGOs,
in other words, all organizations have chosen Azerbaijan's activities
as main targets.
The brilliant victory of young Azerbaijanis, Eldar and Nigar, at the
May 2011 Eurovision song contest held in Dusseldorf filled the hearts
of millions of Azerbaijanis with joy. The victory also created ample
opportunities to show Azerbaijan's modern image to the world, inform
the international community of our realities and to promote of the
rich national culture, customs, traditions and history. Naturally,
at that time, nobody thought that those who do not like Azerbaijan
will become active and a large-scale aggressive campaign against
Azerbaijan will be launched, and even Eurovision, a cultural event,
will be politicized.
Germany is currently in charge of the "information war" waged against
Azerbaijan
Analysis of the "information war" declared against Azerbaijan shows
that the main actors of the process are certain circles in the West
that have political and economic interests in Azerbaijan; Armenia
and the Armenian lobby; Islamophobs and the radical opposition. In
the opinion of some politicians and analysts, there is much similar
in the activity of the foreign circles and the radical opposition
who are waging the propaganda campaign against Azerbaijan. That after
Dusseldorf, the UK media launched the massive slander campaign against
Azerbaijan, then Germany took over the relay and the Azerbaijani
opposition enthusiastically supported this insidious process shows
that these claims have serious grounds.
Germany's ambassador to Azerbaijan Herbert Quelle tried to explain
in a specific fashion the "crusade" of the German media in a piece
that Yeni Azarbaycan newspaper published. In his opinion, following
the victory in the Eurovision song contest in Dusseldorf, the German
media began paying more attention to Azerbaijan and alongside positive
information, it came across numerous negative reports on the internet
and proceeded to exaggerate them. The ambassador wrote that the federal
authorities of Germany have no means to influence or give directions
to the independent and powerful German mass media.
Naturally, the theories of the ambassador who protects his country's
interests are nothing but an attempt to explain the problem within the
framework of these interests. The approach of Mr Quelle would not have
been one-sided if he approached the issue from the perspective of a
collapse of important transcontinental energy projects, intensification
of contacts of the German authorities and other political circles
with the Azerbaijani opposition, the active participation of German
Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his deputy for [European
affairs] Michael Link in the process, and the topics that they
discussed during meetings with the opposition "leaders".
German foundations are acting as the organizers of the dirty campaign
being waged
The recent groundless and biased materials spread by Germany's leading
media, such as Der Spiegel and ARD were connected with the interests
of certain circles within Germany with regard to Azerbaijan. However,
doubts that there are more powerful forces behind this issue grew
stronger as the leading mass media of Germany joined the process,
as there was a noticeable activation of the German foundations of
Konrad Adenauer, Friedrich Naumann, Heinrich Boll, and Friedrich
Ebert in Azerbaijan, and as the meetings of German officials and MPs
with leaders of opposition parties followed. Investigation brought
to surface evidence that these doubts were not groundless in any way.
Out of the South Caucasus countries, Georgia has taken the path to
NATO integration and Armenia is a member of the Collective Security
Organization that Russia created. Azerbaijan is the only country
that did not join any bloc and conducts an independent policy. In
the opinion of some experts certain Western circles that cannot bear
to see Azerbaijan's independent policy are making active efforts to
bring it into their sphere of influence and currently this task has
been assigned to Germany. This factor explains why Germany is trying
to put pressure on Azerbaijan using both the Eurovision factor and the
standard pressure tools of the West: democracy human rights and so on.
Therefore, experts believe that the current strengthening of the
contacts of German foundations with the radical opposition is not
a coincidence.
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation is acting actively to present the
position of the radical forces in the foreign media
It is no secret that traditionally the German foundations have had
serious relations with the People's Front of Azerbaijan Party (PFAP)
and the Musavat Party. The media have repeatedly published reports
about the special role of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in financing
these parties. The Azerbaijani office of the foundation is being
controlled by Arastun Oruclu, the head of the East-West Research Centre
and a member of the Coordination Council of the organization known as
the "Public Chamber". Michael Link, who used to be the deputy chairman
of German Bundestag's parliamentary group for the South Caucasus,
actively participates and makes presentations in all events held in
Azerbaijan by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation. The media have even
sometimes presented him as an expert of the foundation. According
to information given by the close associates of Ali Karimli, the
opposition camp, especially the PFAP, greeted with great enthusiasm
the news that Link was appointed the deputy foreign minister of
Germany in January 2012. Karimli described Link as "our friend"
and told his associates that this appointment was not a coincidence
at all. When saying this Karimli possibly meant that the Friedrich
Naumann Foundation is affiliated with Germany's Free Democratic Party.
Link is an activist of this part. Consequently, Link's appointment
on the one hand promises more funding from the foundation and on the
other creates conditions for the PFAP to receive support from the
German government and the Free Democratic Party.
The subsequent position of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation on
Azerbaijan is also interesting. According to reports on Georgian
websites, at the event held in Tbilisi in March 2012 discussions were
held on human rights and freedom of speech and media in Azerbaijan.
Yasimin Pamuk, the foundation's project manager for the South Caucasus
sharply criticized Azerbaijan and talked about some projects which
the foundation wanted to implement. The Support Free Future project
envisaged organizing a campaign on human rights and "political
prisoners" in Azerbaijan in the run-up to the Eurovision song contest,
shooting and distributing a special video and staging marches in some
European countries.
Currently, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation is actively working
on the foreign media coverage of the position of radical forces in
Azerbaijan. It is no coincidence that it was under the aegis of this
foundation that representatives of German media leaders of the PFAP
and Musavat, activists, NGO members known as vocal critics of the
government and journalists are having meetings.
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation is trying to compensate for its
difficulties in some countries by expanding its operations in
Azerbaijan
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation known for its links with the chairwoman
of the Christian Democratic Union and the chancellor of Germany,
Angela Merkel, is trying to compensate for its difficulties in
some countries by expanding its operations in Azerbaijan. The Cairo
office of the foundation in Egypt was searched by police and members
of the prosecutor's office on 29 December 2011 and its activities
were banned. Also its office in the United Arab Emirates stopped its
activities on 22 March 2012.
Germany's ambassador to Azerbaijan supports Ali Karimli
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation's office has not been officially
registered in Azerbaijan but its activities have not been restricted
in any way. The organization's representative in Azerbaijan is a
one-time employee of Radio Liberty and is considered an associate of
Ali Karimli. In addition, the representative of the foundation for
the South Caucasus, Canan Atilkan is always keeping in touch with Ali
Karimli and meets him every time he visits Baku. Let us note that
by regularly inviting Ali Karimli to events held abroad Atilkan is
trying to emphasize his problems to international organizations. The
interesting aspect of the matter is that the German ambassador to
Azerbaijan, Quelle, joins the process and lends his support to Ali
Karimli. After his meeting with Quelle in February 2012, Karimli told
his associates that the ambassador promised that Germany will induce
the European Union and the Council of Europe to put serious pressure
on Azerbaijan.
The Friedrich Ebert Foundation extends financial support to
organizations affiliated with the PFAP
Although the Friedrich Ebert Foundation of Germany presents itself as
a neutral organization, it extends financial support to organizations
affiliated with the PFAP. The representative of the foundation in
Azerbaijan, Rasad Huseynli, was once a member of the PFAP and with
support from Karimli and Mehman Aliyev, the director of the Turan news
agency, was appointed a member of the board of the Soros Foundation.
The objective of this appointment was to obtain a majority of votes
within the board when the Soros Foundation made decisions on allocating
grants for NGOs linked with the PFAP. Even now events related to human
rights and democracy issues are held in Azerbaijan at the initiative
and with financial support of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation. It must
be noted that mainly opposition members, NGOs and journalists that
are critical of the government are invited to these events.
Thus, the analysis of the activities of German foundations gives
grounds to say that these organizations are playing an active part in
forming negative opinion of Azerbaijan abroad by funding the opposition
and through various events and campaigns. Considering their closeness
to the top political circles in Germany, it is clear to see what
factors are standing behind the recent surge in their activities.
German officials are also among those who lend support to this dirty
campaign
However, this campaign waged against Azerbaijan with support from
the German government is not limited to the activities of these
organizations. At his meeting with leaders of opposition parties,
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle in addition to discussing
the existing public and political situation in Azerbaijan also spoke
on support of Germany for the opposition. The German embassy and
relevant German bodies did not respond in any way at the righteous
protests of event the ruling New Azerbaijan Party and Milli Maclis
MPs following this event.
The German government's Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and
Humanitarian Aid, Markus Loning, (let us note that he has close
links with the head of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, Wolfgang
Gerhardt) is one of the main organizers of the campaign waged against
Azerbaijan. In August 2011 Loning was remembered by the harsh remarks
he made during the visit to Baku. At the meeting with opposition
members, he said that "Germany is always ready to assist you to make
changes in Azerbaijan".
In keeping with this line, the ombudsman publishes in Der Spiegel
weekly and other German media harsh anti-Azerbaijani materials and
gives interviews. At the moment, Mr Loning is an active participant
of all events held in connection with Azerbaijan. He writes letters to
the state officials, politicians, journalists and musicians who want to
travel to Azerbaijan and invites them to join the campaign being waged
against Azerbaijan. Germany's representative in the Council of Europe,
Kristofer Strasser, repeatedly tries to carry out his plans to visit
Azerbaijan as a rapporteur of the Council of Europe for the alleged
"political prisoners" but for certain objective reasons this does not
happen. Mr Strasser refused to understand that "political prisoners"
is an abstract notion and has no definition in the international
law. On the other hand, why are political motives being sought in the
sentencing of people for specific criminal activities in Azerbaijan
only? Did Armenia restore the rights of the people shot during the
elections, of the dozens of demonstrators arrested then? It is not so
difficult to find political motives in the criminal cases of certain
people in developed European countries too. Another interesting aspect
of the matter is that as an MP of Germany's Bundestag Strasser makes
biased claims against Azerbaijan in remarks to the local media.
Green Party too joined the anti-Azerbaijan campaign
It is also of interest that the Green Party, which is considered a
serious political force in Germany, also became active and joined the
anti-Azerbaijani campaign. Distinguished by her pro-Armenian position,
the deputy chairman of Bundestag's parliamentary group for the South
Caucasus, Viola von Cramon met [self-exiled former Azerbaijani speaker]
Rasul Quliyev, who was visiting Germany, in the beginning of 2012
and discussed her party's support for the Azerbaijani opposition.
In addition, Cramon organized for Quliyev meetings with other MPs.
Recently Cramon even said she wants to put the Eurovision song contest
issue on the agenda in Bundestag. She said she will make Bundestag
appeal to the European Union countries to boycott the Eurovision
contest. It is no coincidence that a German MP from the Green Party,
Folker Berg, openly told the media that "Baku is not suited for
holding Eurovision".
Also as Neue Osnabrucker Zeitung newspaper wrote, in response to the
Green Party's inquiry the German government said that, 136 people
were tortured in Azerbaijan in 2011 and three of them died. The
German government answered the official inquiry not on the basis of
reports by relevant bodies of Azerbaijan or authoritative international
organizations, but using a report of the Azerbaijan Committee Against
Torture puppet organization as a "trusted" source. At the very least,
this is disrespect for German-Azerbaijani relations.
All these cases confirm once again that today Germany is conducting
a dirty campaign against Azerbaijan at the state level. State
officials, government bodies, mass media, and NGOs, in other word
all organizations; have chosen the activities of Azerbaijan as the
main target.
There are good reasons why we were late to respond to the piece that
Mr Ambassador Herbert Quelle published in our newspaper. Because it
took a long time for our editorial staff to find the realities that
he did not say or did not want to say. However, it will probably also
take some time to refute them.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress