Human Rights Watch says Azerbaijani journalists face violence and prosecution

[News_Editor]

Human Rights Watch says Azerbaijani journalists face violence and prosecution

2010-10-27 08:23:14 GMT+7 (ICT)

BAKU, AZERBAIJAN (BNO NEWS) -- Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday released a report that indicates that journalists in Azerbaijan are facing violence and prosecution from their government.

The 94-page report said that the Azerbaijani government is using criminal laws and violent attacks to silence journalists that oppose the views and opinions of the government. Dozens of journalists have been prosecuted on criminal and civil defamation and other criminal charges.

In addition, police forces have carried out physical attacks on journalists, deliberately interfering with their efforts to investigate issues of public interest. These acts represent the government's efforts to limit freedom of expression.

The report, entitled "Beaten, Blacklisted, and Behind Bars: The Vanishing Space for Freedom of Expression in Azerbaijan," documents restrictions on freedom of expression in Azerbaijan for many years. HRW interviewed over 37 print and radio journalists and editors for the creation of the text.

The pro-human rights group said that Azerbaijan should free imprisoned journalists and repeal criminal libel laws that allow public officials and others to bring criminal charges against journalists and activists.

The government, led by President Ilham Aliyev, should also prosecute violence or threats against reporters that currently are unpunished, the organization said. Human Rights Watch added that the attacks on free speech threaten to undermine the legitimacy of parliamentary elections scheduled for November 7.

"A vibrant public debate is crucial to free and fair elections," said Giorgi Gogia, South Caucasus researcher at Human Rights Watch and author of the report. "But you can't have a free and fair vote when the people who report the news are in jail or have been harassed into silence."

In the last three years, three journalists have fled from the South Caucasus country and sought political asylum in other countries. Despite having abolished the official state censorship in 1998, the Azerbaijani government has used less obvious measures to restrict media freedom.

In 2009, the government enacted legislative amendments which restricted journalists' ability to use video, photo or sound recording without explicit consent of the individual being recorded or filmed, even at public events. The government also prohibited all foreign radio from broadcasting on FM frequencies.

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